Two Lonely Hearts
by SongSiren
Summary: Sequel to Heart of Fire, Heart of Ice. Abel goes out to search for Stella, and helps her to complete her mission. But when they return, why are guards waiting for them? And what will happen to Stella in the Inquisition's interrogation room?
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Yay, sequel! For those of you who did not read the first story GO READ IT! YOU WILL NOT UNDERSTAND THIS IF YOU DON'T. For those of you who did read the last story, I still have writer's block but I'm soooo bored. Must… get…. Internet…. Back….**

**Awww… my last ending made someone sad…. Oh well. quickly writes chapter all better.**

**Disclaimer: I did not, do not, will not own Trinity Blood.**

Thunder hammered on the roof with its remorseless vibrations. Lighting cracked the sky. Abel tossed in his bed. There would be no sleep tonight, not that there had been any other night that month.

Abel decided to get up. He reached for his glasses, but they were not there. He remembered with a wry smile that they were still between the cracks of the cobblestone road outside. It had been and interesting day.

Demetry had arrived, a head full of steam, and had gone right into the Cardinal's office with five guards tailing him. He had ordered to see Abel. Abel had gone to see him, under the condition that they talked out of the church, and before the priest could get a word out, Demetry punched him in the face. Abel's smile faded at what the Titan had said. 'I let my little sister stay with you and you loose her! How could you _loose_ her?!' Demetry was nearly hysterical by that point and it took Tres and Leon to get him off of Abel and calmed down. They explained how his sister had gone missing, but Abel had turned away guiltily by this point.

Abel frowned. This is how it always started. The glasses, Demetry, and finally- yes, there it was. The terrible, unrelenting guilt. Abel knew it wasn't really his fault that Stella had gone, but he was… and then she was… and… There was nothing for it. There were so many things he had done wrong. She was so weak, but he had hesitated, there was so much blood, her own and Onigoma's. No matter how many nights he spent like this, huddled underneath his blankets and guilt, Stella had not come back.

He wondered why she hadn't contacted anyone. No one had seen her except that one woman, the one who had been torn from her children. The children were in the orphanage now, and the woman was dead. Which left him no leads to follow his friend. Had he disappeared like this? Did Esther feel like this? Did it ever go away? Abel sat in bed, praying for the girl he was not sure if she was dead or alive.



"Father Abel Nightroad, Cardinal Kate has ordered me to fetch you and bring you to her office. Objective: fifty percent complete."

Abel stood and followed Tres sleepily from the dining hall to the office. Abel, seeing that the Cardinal had her attention diverted touched the spot his glasses once had rested. He felt absolutely naked without them. After Tres had closed the door behind him, Cardinal Kate turned to Abel.

"Abel, I know that you haven't been sleeping well since Stella left so I've been doing some digging. Last time anyone saw her, Stella was in Albion." She nodded to a piece of paper on the desk.

Abel seized the paper like a lifeline, trying not to get his hopes up.

**Beasley Motel Directory**

**Room One: **_Lumpet, George. _

**Room Two: **_Mann, Eric._

**Room Three: **_Hyde, Annie._

**Room Four: **_Iceheart, Stella._

Abel didn't read any further. Even Stella's unusual cursive writing was a comfort to him. He looked up at the Cardinal with pleading eyes.

The Cardinal seemed to ignore him. "Abel, I'm sorry, but I have a mission for you." A slow smile twitched at her lips. "One of our AX members is nearly forty days absent from work and I need you to retrieve them."

Abel smiled and jumped up. "Thank you, Kate… er… Cardinal Kate!"

Kate held up a hand. "One word of advice, Abel. Before you go running off to find Stella, take Tres and Leon with you. You remember what Demetry said, don't you?"

A small pit of dread found its way to Abel's stomach. "What did he say?"

"After he apologized for breaking you glasses, he said that his sister had a mission in mind and that 'a Titan that doesn't want to be found will not be found'. Be careful, Abel. We don't knew that much about Stella and we don't know what she'll do if she's trapped in a corner."

"I won't trap her in a corner!"

"You know what I mean, Abel. If she feels she is threatened, she might try something, and Titans aren't Methuselah."

"I know, but I don't think-"

"Abel." Kate said sharply. "I don't want to loose either of you because of her. Just be careful and grab Tres and Leon before you leave. Here's your train ticket."

Abel took his ticket and felt a wave of gratitude toward the Cardinal. The ticket gave him a glimmer of hope that he hadn't felt in what seemed a lifetime.



"Awww, this is a pain in the ass, literally." Leon complained.

"Language, Father Leon." Abel said absently.

Leon turned his attention to Abel and became solemn. "Abel, don't get your hopes up too high. We all know that you miss her and all, but none of us know how Stella's mind works. We don't even know if…"

Abel handed him the paper for the Beasly motel. "This is our first stop."

Leon's eyes widened. "All right!" he shouted. "Maybe I can finally start training again!" He punched the air. Then he glared at Tres and Abel. "Of course I probably would have been able to beat her already if you guys would just train me."

"You were trained that one week by Huge." Abel reminded him.

"That old fart? How's he supposed to train me when he looks like he's been through a shredder?"

"Father Hugue was codenamed sword dancer in his youth and was a great fighter. Still is, actually, though he's a little slower." Abel said reasonably.

"Really?" Father Leon asked.

"Affirmative. Father Abel Nightroad, we will be in Albion in two point four seconds." Tres said, not moving his head towards either of the Fathers.

"Good. We'll be going to the Beasly Motel first." Abel nodded and started getting their bags together.

They headed off in the direction of the motel. Abel noticed and smiled as they walked that Methuselah walked the streets freely, there were both Terran and Methuselah children in the schoolhouse yard, and he even saw one or two Methuselah/Terran couples. As they went deeper through the town, down the west side from directions of a officer, Abel's smile shrunk. There was a foreboding feeling from the Terrans that sat on their porches and the children that walked the streets. More officers were here and there were no Methuselah.

They turned a corner and everything that worried Abel about the last street came true. There were signs on doors and spray painted on walls, warnings against Methuselah's. Obscene pictures and words were everywhere and Abel had the feeling that they all stuck out like a sore thumb. Glares followed them through the streets to the motel, which was covered from roof to foundation in graffiti and pictures of dead Methuselah. Abel wondered how a sweet girl like Stella could stay in such a place, especially after all her speeches of not 'lowering herself to their level'. Their, meaning, the Terran's and sometimes Methuselah.

They entered. Abel approached the desk as Tres and Leon tied not to bump over the tacky vase that was far too large for such a confined place. "Excuse me, but could you help me? I believe a woman by the name of Stella Iceheart stayed here a week ago and we are looking for her. She's about this tall," he pointed to a little below his shoulder, "with brown hair and red in the front. She also…"

"I only was hired a few weeks ago." The woman behind the desk said. She attempted to smile charmingly at Abel. "But of course I would help you if I could."

Abel nodded. "May we see the room she stayed in?" Once again, he cursed Demetry for breaking his glasses, which hid his eyes that women found so alluring a little bit.

"Of course."

**A/N: Review!**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Whoohoo, I already got a review! **

**Disclaimer: TRINTY BLOOD IS NOT MINE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!**

Abel's heart lay heavy with disappointment. He didn't know what they were searching for, but he still hoped that they would find _something. _But there was no sign of Stella ever had been there, except a red strand of hair on the dusty pillow, a faint outline of where she had sleep and what Tres had analyzed, her fingerprints on the curtains and bed. They had learned nothing except that the motel didn't get much business.

Sighing heavily, the trio marched back out to the lobby. The young woman who had first been there when they came was apparently off shift and was replaced by a white-haired balding man with an angry expression. As they crossed the hall, his eyes widened.

"Eh, you, are ya a priest?" he asked, his voice sounded as if he was struggling to sound as polite as possible.

All three turned towards him, and Abel answered. "Yes, we are priests."

The man mumbled something and started rummaging around the desk. A few minutes later, he took out a piece of folded paper. "Give this to a silver-'aired priest with glasses. Might be traveling with a man with copper 'air or a man with long black 'air." He read aloud. He appraised the three. "I don' see no glasses on ye."

Abel felt his heart flutter in his chest slightly-perhaps this mission was not to be fruitless. "My glasses broke." He said, reaching out for the note.

The man growled slightly, but handed the not over. He looked as if he was waiting for Abel to open it and read it aloud, but Abel signaled to the others and they left the disgruntled motel owner to curse alone in his greasy motel. They walked a few blocks before Abel took out the note. It had a bit of candle wax sealing it closed, so he would know if it had been read, he supposed. He opened it and was disappointed to find that there was only a short message inside.

_I don't trust the motel owner._

_I'll leave you a note at the Green Tree Inn._

_Stella._

If seeing her name on the Beasly Motel register made Abel's heart beat faster, seeing Stella actually trying to reach out and make contact with him perfectly elated him. He handed the note to Tres and Leon, not trusting himself to not shout. They read it over.

"Aww, we're going to be tracking this girl around the city all day, aren't we?" Leon complained.

"Accessing information. Green Tree Inn is a small inn started by Sarah and Mike Illaman thirteen years ago. It is located across the city, approximately twenty blocks away from the palace." Tres said, cutting off Abel's cry of indignation.

"Right, let's go. Maybe Virgil has seen her." Abel said while walking quickly in the direction of the palace.



"Excuse me, but do you have a note for me. I'm Abel Nightroad." Abel said quickly to the motel owner. This motel was nicer, and cleaner. It was a little larger than the last one, but only had about three people there at a time. Somewhere Abel would have expected Stella to be.

The owner appraised Abel silently before saying slowly, "Me wife took all of hour papers home for the night, but I know there was a note meant for a silver-haired priest. Ye can wait till she comes back tomorrow with them." He said in a kind of drawn-out accent.

"Um… sure. I guess, one room with three beds." Abel said, turning to Leon, who had been put in charge of their funds, for money.

When they had settled in their room, which was a bit overcrowded because of the threes beds, Abel decided to make a call. He took a minute to remember the personal number before dialing.

"Hello?"

"Virgil? It's Abel Nightroad."

"Good morning Abel…."

"Vigil, it's night."

"Oh. Yes. Just a little tired. Vanessa's here."

"Good evening Vanessa. How are things with the Methuselah-Terran mixing movement?" Abel asked pleasantly.

A woman's voice floated over the receiver. "Everyone is cooperating except a few neighborhoods on the west side of the city. We're currently trying to wash the graffiti off the walls of buildings that are technically ours, but it keeps popping up more and more every night. Damn kids."

"Vanessa, blood pressure." Virgil's voice came warningly. "So what brings you to call, Abel?"

"Well, we're in the city and we're looking for Stella."

"She's still missing?" Virgil's worried reply came. "How's Demetry taking it?" Demetry and Virgil had become fast friends, but Virgil knew as well as Abel that the Leader of the newly named country, Kenpei, had been unreachable to any of his allies across the ocean. Last Abel had heard, Demetry was in a deep depression.

"His secretary says that he can barely pretend to be happy when addressing his citizens." Abel said sadly.

"Hmm. I'll be sure to try and talk to him." Virgil said musingly. "So what about Stella." Abel quickly explained what had happened in the past twenty-four hours and asked if Virgil has seen Stella. "No, I'm afraid I-"

"I think I have." Vanessa's voice said clearly. "Her voice was completely calm, a little high with a patient tone to it? It was three days ago. She was calling from the same extension you are on now. She was asking me questions about Methuselah and Terran disappearances. I told her that a few have gone missing on the west side of town, and when I asked why, she did not reply. The entire conversation lasted five minutes."

Abel sighed. "I'm worried about her and whatever it is she is doing. At least we know that three days ago she wasn't dead."

"Yes, but Abel, remember, death only takes an instant."

"Not with her. It takes hours." Abel said mournfully. Instead of assuring himself, he felt as if he had dealt himself a crushing blow.

"I'm sorry, Abel, but that is all we know."

"It's fine." He sighed. "I guess we'll just have to wait for that note she left us." He said.

He climbed into bed a moment later, for another sleepless night.

**A/N: Why does it feel like this chapter took forever? Review!**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Glad to see that you all are still reading!**

**I just read a hilarious Naruto fanfic that had to do with the Atusuki and well… it is kind of hard to make this a serious chapter, so bear with me.**

**Disclaimer: Fine. I do not own Trinity Blood. Maybe if I ask for Christmas.**

"Uh, sir?"

Abel turned from where he had been trudging miserably out the door. With a sigh he said, "Yes?"

"My wife has that note you were looking for."

Abel and Leon were over at the desk within seconds yelling like small children whose babysitter was withholding a special treat while Tres walked over slowly and calmly. The bewildered Innkeeper handed the letter to Tres, much to the disappointment of the boy-men standing next to him. The android glanced at it for a moment before handing it to Abel.

"Father Abel Nightroad, the letter is addressed to you. The writing matches Miss Stella Iceheart's."

Abel unfolded the paper and read quickly.

_Abel,_

_I'm sorry, for running out on you but I had to catch the man behind the entire scheme. I did, but this problem goes pretty deep. I am currently trying to find the source and my next stop in pretty far. I really miss you and I hope that Demetry didn't get too upset over my leaving. Tell everyone I miss them and my thoughts are with them. Tell Demetry that the Lysistrata disease is spreading and if I need help I won't call him. He'll know what it means._

_Stella._

Abel was glad to hear from Stella, but his heart dropped as he realized she left him no way to track her. The word Lysistrata seemed familiar to him and his brain yelled at him for not remembering it. Or maybe Stella expected him not to? He shook his head sadly and handed the letter to Leon and Tres.

Abel and the others went to the train station, and, with lack of anything better to do, bought train tickets. He marched back to the bench where Leon and Tres were sitting and didn't even pretend to fall down. There was no point. He sat with them and sighed.

"Father Abel Nightroad."

"Yes?"

"I have read the note and over the past fifty three point nine minutes, been going over medical research. Lysistata is not a known disease. I have also contacted Cardinal Kate in the Iron Maiden. She said we are to report back to King Virgil to find any more information about Miss Stella Iceheart from Head of the Methuselah/Terran integrating Movement Vanessa Walsh. We are also to speak with Leader Demetry Iceheart about his sister."

Abel sweat dropped. "And you couldn't tell me this before I bought the expensive train tickets!?" He yelled, waving the tickets in the air.

"Negative."



"Err… I really don't want to do this." Abel said uncomfortably.

"Awww, come on, he likes you best." Leon said teasingly.

"For goodness sake's Abel. Just talk to the man." Cardinal Kate said from where she was floating in the room.

"No, I'd really feel more comfortab-"

"Yes?" Demetry's hologram glared out at Abel.

"Oh! Leader Demtry! I was-"

"Have you found my sister yet?" he growled. Abel noticed the bags under his eyes and crumpled clothes.

"Er… we've found a note."

Demetry's glare deepened. "My little sister is out there, trying to fight who knows what and you expect me to feel better because of a piece of paper?"

The way he kept deadly calm but allowed menace to drench his voice destroyed any doubts that he should be a leader. He had the uncanny ability to make his point clear and make Abel feel totally and completely small. It also made his Crusnick want to raise his voice in indignation. Didn't he know that Abel knew that Stella was still missing? Didn't he know that Abel spent every free second he had thinking about her, blaming himself? Still, the ring of reason and the blatant point made, made it impossible for Abel to argue. Of course, it caused a pang of guilt and sadness. Stella spoke exactly like that most of the time. The Titan siblings truly resembled each other.

"Er… no. But there is a message for you." Abel said meekly.

Demetry seemed to hold onto this for a second before replying. "Right. What was it?" Abel read the letter aloud. When he looked up, Demetry's pale face was even paler. In the bluish-glow of the hologram. He seemed to shake himself out of his stupor and hung his head. "Abel, my friend, I'm sorry for breaking your glasses and loosing control as I did. I should not have blamed you when it was obvious my sister was acting of her own capricious accord. There is no excuse for what I have done and for that you have my deepest remorse."

Abel smiled. "Why is it that you Titans think that every act is one that will push people away forever?"

Opps, wrong words. Demetry's face grew sorrowful. "Though Stella might have told you much of our past, there is no way for you to know half the pain we went through. Betrayal and deplorable actions from Terrans and devious and underhanded actions from Methuselah was the norm. Every move we made was one under scrutiny and for that we truly have had no friends. Father Abel, your reaching out to her that night long ago when she was weak without asking anything in return was something new to both her and me. Her… my… our gratitude goes farther than you can imagine. The same goes to all of you." He nodded to the filled room. He smiled kindly at them. "This is new and I apologize, but we do not know exactly how it works."

"Eh, just relax. We promise, anything you do can't be that bad." Leon said, putting his arms behind his head. He looked thoughtful for a moment. "But declare war on us and we'll beat you to a bloody pulp."

Demetry let out something between a snort and a chuckle. "I'll remember that."

"Where are you going now?"

The trio glanced over at Kate. She shrugged. "From all the information you've given us, there really is nothing to do. Stella is going on a one-man hunt to take down something pretty big. We can do nothing but keep our eyes and ears open. Abel, Tres, and Leon will return home, we have a multitude of things we need them to do and we really can't spare them to go on wild goose hunts."

Virgil spoke for the first time. "Then we will all keep each other up to date on our little Titan. I'll do my best here, and Abel, perhaps you should inform Seth, just in case."

Abel groaned. "I'm going to enjoy that conversation." He said sarcastically.

"Let's hope and pray that she returns safely." Finished Virgil.

"Agreed." The holograms switched off and the trio left with their good-byes to Virgil for the train system.

**A/N: Next chapter: We finally see what's going on with Stella! Review!**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Yay! This story is as popular as the prequel. Also, I just watched the first time Abel met Asta and I love when she starts yelling at him in Russian.**

**Disclaimer: I'm sure that by now you know I do not own Trinity Blood. God, I have told you forty-four times.**

**This chapter is dedicated to Vampyro Teuthis for her awesome reviews on both stories!**

The streets were brightly colored and the shops well kept. Venders shouted their wares. There was not a cloud in the sky and the sun gently caressed the gleaming city. The parks were without litter. Methuselahs and Terrans rubbed shoulders. Children ran across the streets with mothers yelling after them. People laughed and chatted the day away.

Still, the beauty of this day was lost to the dark figure that walked the streets alone. The slight breeze blew the black trench coat with white lining against her frame, so it was obviously a woman. A few strands of dark hair escaped the high collar and old hat that adorned her head. Long strides allowed boots to poke out from underneath the coat and pants that went down to her ankles. The only splash of color on her was a small, blood red, crudely shaped heart necklace.

To the woman, the streets were like any other, with police on every corner that might get in the way of her mission. The sun rendered her dark cover useless. The miracles of smiling flowers and giggling children were ignored. Everyone was another person she had to protect from the evil that lurked below. Every smiling face that met her bright blue eyes was one with malice hidden behind theirs.

The figure took sharp turns and walked with a purposeful air. This was her last lead and hell would freeze over before she would relinquish it. She walked down another street and to a building that seemed to carry a disease, if the way the people avoided it was any indicator. A few people walked across the street just to evade walking by it. One woman let out a sob when she passed it, as if it pained her to do so. The woman in black narrowed her eyes. Yes, there had definitely been some deaths recently.

As she walked up the steps, women enjoying tea on a nearby porch whispered to each other urgently. Stepping behind the brick column in between the end of the steps and the faded green paint of the door, the woman listened in on the conversation.

"Did you see that?"

"Yes, another one."

"Her clothes were black; she's in mourning."

"Oh, she looked so young too."

"It always happens to the young ones. It's such a shame."

The woman shrugged off their statements about her and sifted through the rest. It sounded as if there were quite a lot of deaths. She opened the door to the morgue. A woman looked up from her desk and frowned.

"Another one?"

"No, I'm just here to ask some questions."

"Ahh, the master said he's not takin anymore questions from ye police-types."

Each woman regarded each other for a minute. Finally, the one in black said coolly, "fine." And left the secretary searching for a sweater.

The dark woman left the morgue and ignored the hushed whispers and pitying stares she got from the biddies on the porch. She walked up to them and did her best to smile sweetly, which was hard, considering the past month.

"Excuse me, can you tell me where the police station is?"

"Don't try it, sweetie." A woman raised her hand and waved it. Her voice was deep and watery. "Those men have been working for months on this, and they haven't made one arrest."

The woman was getting impatient. Each moment lost was another life gone. "I suppose not, but, still, I must talk to them."

"Ach, let 'er go, Cissy. Who knows, maybe 'ers will turn up." Another woman spoke up. "Follow this stret 'till ya see a big sign that says police. They like ter keep themselves close to the morgue."

"Thank-you." The woman moved quickly down the street, sometimes just a blur to Terrans.

She was in front of the police station in minutes. She looked up. Yes, there it was, you couldn't get much clearer than that.

**New Human Empire Head Police Station**

She walked in and requested (more like demanded) to see the chief. She was lead to a small room in the back and sat in a rickety wooden chair across from an extremely skinny man with bright red hair and a turned-up nose.

"I need some information." The woman said simply.

"And what would you need?" The man asked warily.

"I need the complete records of deaths and disappearance for the past two months." She said bluntly.

The man seemed surprised. "Usually when we have a woman in here, she breaks down and demands we find her husband."

The second in between his statement and her answer was colder than one would have expected. "I have lost no one, and I intend to keep it that way."

"Oh." The man wavered with the iciness and strength in her voice. "Well, you, someone had taken over that department…"

"Let me make this perfectly clear." She interrupted. "I have information and abilities to help with the sudden disappearances and homicides the three countries. Now you tell me what I want when I want or there will be more blood on your hands than what can fit in a water tower."

"Er… The Earl of Memphis has taken over the investigation!" squeaked out the small man.

"Where can I find him?"

"Right here."

The woman turned to a man walking into the room. His blonde hair was a little overgrown and nearly hid his red eyes. He had a barely-visible scar just next to his right eye in the shape of a crescent, as well as one across his throat, suggesting he almost had his throat slit a long time ago. He was quite handsome.

"My name is Ion Fortuna. And yours…" He held out a hand, which also had a small scar running across the back.

The woman took it. "Stella Iceheart."

**A/n: Wow, I'm good. Sorry for marking up Ion's face, but what do you expect after a few decades of hunting Cain? Just imagine him a little more mature-looking.**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: I had to do a little research on Seth and Ion to figure out what they look like now and what thirty years would do to them, so don't sue me if they aren't your idea of grown-up version of them.**

**Disclaimer: A dream is a dream, nothing more or less.**

"Seth? Seth is that you?"

"Oh hello, brother. It's been quite awhile."

"SETH! You look… you look…."

"Old? That's what happens after thirty years." Seth had retained much of her childish charm, but now, at least, she looked like a teenager.

Her hair had grown a bit longer, but still was cut short, just below her chin. Her face had matured, loosing all childish look to it. She still sat in the mechanical moving seat and her emerald dress was the same color as her eyes. She still grinned like a madwoman, but to Abel it was endearing.

"Er… right…. I'm sorry…."

Seth waved a hand, dismissing it. "I know, I know. Let's forget about that for a moment." She steepled her hands and leaned forward. "Last time you came to see me, brother, something very bad was happening, if you remember."

Abel's holographic head nodded. "Of course, and something bad is happening now. A friend of mine has gone missing and we have no idea in which of the four countries she's taken refuge in."

"She, huh?" Seth said, laughter dancing in her eyes and a smile twitching at her lips.

"Yes, she." Abel said, albeit a little impatiently. "We were on a mission and well, things got a little out of hand. It ended up with her going after someone and Tres and me got left behind. She's been gone for a month."

Seth raised an eyebrow. "Oh? And do have any idea where she is?"

"Erm… no. She doesn't want us to follow her. She was here in Albion yesterday, but by now she could be on a ship to Kenpei, or right in your own city, just a few blocks away from where you sit."

Seth pursed her lips. "Where would she most likely be? And what does she look like?"

"I thought I had her figured out, but… before she stayed in a place that didn't seem at all like her and then she stayed a place that did. She keeps many secrets that even her brother does not know."

"Who's her brother, another friend of yours?"

Abel grinned and unconsciously touched the bridge of him nose, where his glasses normally would be. "And yours. His name is Demetry, Leader of Kenpei."

Seth gasped. "So that is what vexes him lately."

"Yes, and here we are all worried as well. She is very good at making friends."

Seth nodded sagely, but a twinkle of childish mischief was in her eyes. "Of course, if she's won the favor of the Vatican. But remember, brother, she might not be good at making friends as much as you are good at giving your trust and friendship."

"Which is, knowing Father Nightroad, most likely the case." A new voice joined the discussion, causing Abel to turn around.

"Ion?"

Ion chuckled, his voice a bit deeper than it had been when they first met. "Of course it's me, Abel. What did you think, I would disappear after you dumped me at that hospital in Barcelona?"

Ion had gotten a bit taller in the past ten years and the scars had faded considerably, but not completely. Abel smiled at the memory that Ion said liked the scars that they made him look 'a bit manlier'. That they did, and well as the now well-pronounced chin and nose. Still, he was a quite handsome man and Abel wondered how he did not yet have a bride.

"Er, no. And again, I'm sorry, but you…"

Ion waved his hand in the same manner as Seth had. "It's all right, Abel. I'm older now and I realized it was childish of me to think I could accompany you."

"How long have you been there, Ion?" Seth asked good-naturedly.

Ion shrugged. "A bit, about when you started inquiring about a 'she'." He walked around Abel's hologram so that he could face both Seth and Ion at the same time.

"Good. Now, go on, Abel."

"Um… let's see. She obsesses over cases, so her first stop would be the police station… or possibly a morgue." He noticed that Ion's eyes widened in recognition, but he allowed him to speak. "She had dark hair, with two red streaks in the front. Her eyes are bright blue, and she might have a necklace around her throat, a blood red heart. She probably hasn't eaten in awhile, so she is probably unhealthily skinny. She may seem like a Terran, but she's not."

"Oh, really?" This seemed to spark Seth's interest more than the fact that her brother had a female friend. "And the mystery of this girl gathers. Tell me, brother, does she have a name."

"Stella Icheart." Abel's eye widened. His mouth had opened to speak, but it was Ion's voice that spoke the name.

"Oh, so now you know her too?" Seth crossed her arms over her chest and pouted childishly. "Why am left out of the fun?"

Ion shook his head, grinning. "I am sorry, my queen, but I just learned this news this morning. A dark woman came to see me, inquiring about the disappearances that have been going on. She seemed to know a lot about them, and we agreed to meet and talk tomorrow morning. Well, then I came here to see you, to tell you about her."

Abel's eyes widened. "You've seen Stella?" He turned around to what was invisible to the others. "Leon! Tres! Virgil! They've found Stella."

Half of Leon's hologram came into the picture. "Hey! That's great." His face scowled. "Who are they again?"

"That's the Earl of Memphis and the Queen of the empire! She's also my sister! Mind your manners!" Abel exclaimed.

"Oh, yeah, right. I don't mind my manners when I talk to Kate, what makes you think…"

"Let me guess, this is Leon's son?" Ion said, stepping forward.

"Yes." Abel said wearily. "He's also a nuisance and had a worse vocabulary."

Ion chuckled. "What would a Leon be without it?"

"Hey! Stop talking about me like I'm not here! Leon cried indignantly.

Seth cleared her throat. "Abel, there is a train leaving from Albion to the Empire in one hour. And Ion will be slightly late for his morning meeting because of a recent disappearance. Orders from the queen herself." She smiled.

"Seth, what would I do without you?" Abel smiled.

"Probably loose your girlfriend." Seth said, pressing a button to cut off all contact and Abel's incensed cry. She put an arm on her armrest and leaned her face against it. "Abel, I wonder what will become of you now."

**A/N: Uh-oh. I wonder how Stella would like to see Abel?**


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: HIHIHHIHHIHH. Is that what you wanted?**

**Disclaimer: If I owned Trinity Blood, I would actually be making these episodes wouldn't I?**

Stella drummed her fingers on the tabletops. Ion was late, and she didn't want to wait a moment longer than she had to. She sat next to a window facing the door in the old coffee shop herself and the Earl had agreed on. She was getting seriously ticked. Her was a half hour late and lives depended on this! She resisted the urge to curse. Her head jerked up as she watched a blonde woman come in.

Stella took in more of the woman's appearance as it became evident that she was coming to her table. The woman had a blue suit and hat on, which made her stick out. Her blonde hair reached down to that back of her knees and pretty much stayed out of her face, save on strip of red.

Her golden eyes scanned the restaurant before coming in contact with Stella's. Had Stella been a Terran or unconfident in her abilities, she would have looked away as a sign of inferiority, but Stella being Stella stared straight back into the woman's eyes. The woman walked forward without hesitaton.

"Are you Stella Iceheart?" She said coolly.

Stella jumped a little. She only knew of six living people who knew her name. She narrowed her eyes and edged her hands closer to the napkin where a knife lay, making the movement just fast enough to make it evident that she did not trust her. "Yes."

The woman reached out a hand. "Astharoshe Asran, Vicontess Odessa of the Empire." Stella did not shake her hand and she lowered her arm. "The Earl of Memphis sent me to apologize for his tardiness, but he had orders from the Queen herself to check out a recent disappearance. He wishes to see you, though and I am to bring you to him."

"Since when am I a bone to fetch." Stella said icily. "Tell me, does the Earl of Memphis know that hundreds of people may be hurt and tortured at this very second, as I wait for him in a coffee house?" She let her words sink in. "And tell me, Vicontess, does he even have information that I can use?"



Astha mentally sighed. They had told her that this girl was friendly, but it looked like she would have to lie to get her there. She had to admire her, though. She liked the way she choose her words and was plucky enough to suggest she could hurt her with a kitchen knife.

"Yes, I believe he does." She lied.

Stella considered her a minute before letting her eyes go back to normal and standing. "Fine."

Astha led her through the streets quickly, as if dawdling would loose her. She had to admit, Stella was fast for a Terran. They arrived at the palace gate and Astha flashed her I.D. Ion was sitting on the steps of the palace, waiting. He smiled warmly when he saw them coming.

"Miss Iceheart, Astha." He smiled. Astha sent him a venomous look. She hadn't been happy about being sent to get the girl because no one would tell her what was so special about this one person, but referring to her in such an informal way was too much.

"Stella, just Stella." The girl said clearly. She looked at them suspiciously. "Well? Is there anything of use that you have found out?"

Ion grinned mischievously. "I have found something that will interest you, Stella. Come now, we must meet the Queen in her study."

The women began following him into the reception hall, but when he took a sharp turn down a dark servant's corridor, Stella's eyes narrowed suspiciously again. "Why do I have the feeling this ends with 'and she was never seen again'?"

Ion chuckled. "Don't worry, nothing's going to happen. It's just that I find the servant's route is much faster and we're less likely to get stopped on our way to see the Queen."



Stella was glad of her Titan vision. As they got closer to the Queen's study, there were less rooms to accept light from until soon she was relying fully on her night vision.

"Terran, do you require assistance?" Astha said loudly in the quiet of the dark hall.

"Do not assume." Stella said loftily, speeding up and bit so that she walked closer to Ion. She fingered her necklace.

Finally, Ion stopped. Stella had to lean back on her heel to keep herself from running into his back. There was a sound of tinkling keys and opened a door. A rich purple curtain was moved aside as he stepped through. He held it up so the ladies could pass. Stella ducked her head (though not much because she was short) and stepped aside so Astha could step through the passageway.

As Ion closed the door behind her, she heard a high voice. "Well, hello there, Miss Iceheart. I've heard a lot about you."

Stella jumped and turned toward the voice. A few feet away, stood a teenage girl in an emerald green dress, holding a huge hat not unlike the Cardinal's. "Wh… Who are you?"

"Me? I'm just a pretty girl." She said, smiling and pointing to her cheek.

Ion stepped forward and bowed between the two girls. "May I introduce, the Queen of the Empire, Queen Nightlord."

Stella's breath caught in her throat. _It's just a coincidence. It's just a coincidence. _She reminded herself. Still, a fleeting picture of a certain silver-haired priest made it hard to swallow and sent her heart of a rampage in her chest. She held out a hand.

"Stella Iceheart, but please just call me Stella."

The girl took her hand and shook. "Then you can call me Seth." She gave Stella's hand a little squeeze before dropping it. She turned away. "Well, I have a few guests right now, so why don't you all join me for tea?"

"Um… I really don't think that's a-"

"Nonsense!" Seth waved her away. She suddenly poked Stella in the stomach, causing the young woman to jump. "You look like you haven't eaten in a month! Let's go." She walked away.

Ion followed without hesitation. Stella glanced at Astha, who had taken that moment to glance at her as well. "Do you know what's going on?"

Astha shook her head. "I'm as much in the dark as you. I wasn't aware that the Queen had guests. I wonder who they are." She mused before falling in step with Ion.

Stella followed the others warily. The 'queen' opened a side door and stepped through. Stella stood in the doorway and gasped. The grandness of the room- the red curtains, crimson carpet and walls, intricately designed table- was lost on her. What she saw was three figures clad in black.

"Fa… Father Nightroad?" Her fingers flew to her lips.

The silver-haired priest whirled around. "Er.. hehe…. Hi, Stella!"

**A/N: Yay the gang's together again…. Possibly. Review!**


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: anyone who likes this fanfic or Trinity Blood in generl, I suggest you read Peeps, by Scott Westerfield. It's excellent.**

**Everyone thank crusnick 02, to whom this chapter is dedicated to… once again I say passionate not insane, review.**

**Disclaimer: WHAT THE HELL! Did you not listen to me last time?**

Stella froze on the spot. What was she supposed to do now? Her hand still covered her mouth and she was already in the room. She couldn't leave; Ion had stepped behind her and closed the door. Finally, it was Leon who broke the tense silence.

"What the hell, Stella? You make us run around this half of the globe for a week and your hiding out here?"

Stella saw Abel cringe. That was probably not how they had wanted to meet. Suddenly everything hit Stella and she just couldn't take it. So… she laughed. She felt people's stares on her, but she kept laughing. She covered her mouth. And tears of mirth pricked the corners of her eyes.

"Üh… is she okay?" Seth asked uncertainly.

"I… don't know…" Abel said hesitantly.

"I'm… fine…. Father Nightroad." Stella straightened up. "I just… after this time… well, to put it simply, Leon, you are so predictable."

"Ï am not!" Leon stuck his chin out indignantly.

"Uh… yeah, you are." Stella said, still smiling. After four weeks of a stoic expression, smiling was more than a little strange for her.

"I think we'd better leave you four alone." Seth suggested, pushing Ion and Astha out of the room.

The door slammed and all four realized at once that they were alone. Stella looked into her friend's faces worriedly. Leon seemed annoyed and Tres was staring out at nowhere. Abel seemed just as worried as her. He waved a hand at a seat next to him. Sighing, Stella sat.

"Ër… Stella…." Abel said tentatively.

"Where the hell did you go?" Leon said loudly.

Stella bowed her head, looking at her clasped hands. "Ï'm sorry, but I can't tell you that."



Abel knew it was coming, but he intended to help her in anyway possible. Even if it meant an interrogation. _Calm down; let's try the nice approach. When that doesn't work… we'll let Leon handle it. _

"Stella, you know you can tell us everything. We want to help."

Stella smiled wryly. Abel saw tears well in her eyes, but they did not spill over. "I know, Father Nightroad, I know. But this is dangerous and…"

"Stella, I've heard and said all the 'this is too dangerous' speeches. Believe me, it's not." Abel tried to say kindly.

Stella tried to meet Abel's gaze. "But what if… what happened last time…"

Abel already knew this was coming. "Stella, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have hesitated…"

"What are you guys talking about?" Leon interrupted.

Stella smiled at him. "Tres will tell you later." She turned to Abel, a bit of the old spark in her eyes. "Father Nightroad, listen to me." She said firmly. "It wasn't your fault that you hesitated. It was out of your control. But this time it will be worse than before. And I don't know if I'll be able to control myself and there will be so many ifs…"

"Shouldn't we be there anyway? If you can't control yourself, I mean." Abel interrupted. They were getting nowhere fast and he felt like Stella would try to bolt any minute.

"No! I mean…. Er!" Stella put her hands to the side of her head. "Father Nightroad, it's safer this way."

"Not for you." Leon spoke up. "You really need to stop thinking about us and think about yourself." Everyone, even Tres, turned his or her attention to Leon. He never had said something so mature.

"Wow, Leon." Stella said, amazed. "A lot of stuff has changed in the past month. Speaking of changed things," she eyes Abel suspiciously, "what happened to your glasses, Father Nightroad?"

"Eh… hehe… It turns out that Demetry was serious when he said if anything happened to you that he would come and get me first." Abel said rubbing the back of his head.

"He… he… Oh, he is _so_ dead." Stella said, standing.

Abel put a hand on her arm. "Is it really necessary to resort to violence?"

"Yes. He had no right to hit you when you did absolutely nothing… mmph!"

Abel looked up. Leon had Stella in a half-headlock with his hand over her mouth. He grinned. "Sorry, but we were getting off topic."

Abel nodded. _I am lucky Leon had a son. _He nodded and smiled sheepishly. "Stella, how about you tell us what you've been doing for a month?"

Leon uncovered her mouth and she plopped back down into her chair. She glared. "You know, if I didn't know what these babies could do," she licked her fangs, "I would have bit you."

"Tres, remind me to ask Dad for his old gloves." Leon said nervously.

"Affirmative."

"Let me get the others, they'll want to hear this." Abel said, standing.

He called out into the hall, where Seth and Ion were explaining Stella to a very angry Astha. Demetry was there as well, and they moved his hologram machine into the room. When they came in and took their respective places at the round table.

Stella sighed. "It's too complicated. I've had so many false leads and have gotten close so many times. Once, I missed them by only an hour, can you believe that?" she chuckled darkly. "Long story short, they are here. In the Empire. It's a disease more or less, except instead of inoculation being the vaccine, it's the way to get the disease. They are turning Methuselah… and some Terrans… into abominations. At first, we thought it was evolution, but it's not. These people are trying to play god, making it easier for the vampires to get food and blend in. It also makes the vampire insane. We're talking about fairy tale stuff. Frothing at the mouth, unquenchable thirst for blood… any blood." She made eye contact with the two Methuselahs and Crusnick to tell them they were in danger as well. "They move around a lot, ever since our little escapade back in Rome." She looked at Ion. "Do you have a map and a red marker?"

Ion nodded and went to fetch the materials.

"So everyone is in peril now?" Astha said quietly.

Stella nodded. "Everyone except the Titans and maybe the Crusnicks." She looked down. "And there is one more thing, as well."

Ion came back and put down the map and marker. Every eye in the room was on the woman's bowed head. She dug in her pockets before pulling out a glass vial with a read splat in the center.

"They have our sister, Lysistrata."

**A/N: Anyone recognize the name? **


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: Mwahhahahahahahaha. Cough Cough…**

**Disclaimer: For the forty-ninth time, I do not own Trinity Blood.**

"No… no. She's dead. Stella, you have to had made a mistake." Demetry said hoarsely.

"There is no mistake." Stella said sharply. Her hand went to the back of her neck. "I _felt_ her."

"Perhaps you should clue us in." Seth prodded gently. She wasn't the teenager anymore; she was the serious leader of the New Human Empire.

"How much did Father Nightroad tell you about me?" Stella asked.

Abel shrugged. "I told them about you being a Titan, but not much else."

Stella sighed and ran her fingers through her hair. "I'm _not_ living that hell again. Basically, I am a failed project of the Titans and specifically designed to protect my siblings from harm. In other words, a shield between them and the bullets." She raised a hand at Demetry, before he could say anything. "My sister, Lysistrata does exactly as her name suggests. The Crusnicks, when we were created, were viewed as an army of super-killers. Therefore, it was her job to kill them. The views of our creators and insane little sister aren't the same as ours." She finished softly, looking at Abel and Seth, who had been exchanging glances throughout her narration.

"Of course." Abel nodded indulgently.

"So what does this mean?" interrupted Astha.

Stella sighed. "It means that I should have tried harder to keep this secret. This is way too dangerous for all of you if Lia is alive."

"What about me? I killed her once…" Demetry said loudly.

"Demetry, what if you're killed? Your country could fall back so far from the months."

"We c-" Abel and Seth started.

"No." Stella said firmly, glaring at them. "Lia is designed to kill you." She looked at each face of her worried friends. "I'm sorry, but right now, not even the Inquisition of the Vatican could make me allow you to put yourselves in that kind of danger."

She moved towards the door, but Leon got there first and Tres soon after. "Miss Stella Iceheart, I have been commanded not to allow you to leave this room." Tres said monotonously. His hand reached inside his cape. "I am authorized to use force."

"Hey! If you touch my sister I'll declare war on the Vatican!" Dsemetry cried shrilly, his hologram moving closer as if it could really hurt Tres.

"No you won't Demetry." Stella said, glancing sharply at her brother. "The decisions I make now are the same as the decisions I have been making. They are mine alone and you have no right to hold them against my... friends." Abel didn't like how serious and quiet she was being. Stella quickly moved away from the door and to the window. She opened one of the panels. She turned and smiled. "And now my friends, I'll see you when my job is finished."

"Stella no!" Abel's cry came too late.

Stella had already launched herself out of the open window. Abel ran to the window and reached out as if to grasp her, but she was nearly halfway through her free fall. She flipped and was falling feet first. She landed and kneeled for a second. She looked back up at the watching crowd with pleading eye before she ran straight out of the castle grounds and was lost in the bustling city.



_Tap._

Abel once again was dealing with his insomnia, so he heard the tap immediately. He dismissed it as a bird.

_Tap. Tap._

Abel had to refrain from cursing the bird in his head.

_Tap. Tap. Tap._

_Persistent bird. _Abel thought wearily. He got up and went to the balcony door. His room was lavish because Seth really never would allow anything but the best for him or his friends so for tonight he was completely alone. He opened the balcony door and instantaneously cried out as something hit him on the mouth and a pressure on his abdomen forced him inside.

"Father Nightroad, it's me. Please don't scream." Stella's voice said lightly. She moved the curtain of the balcony window back so more than enough moon light and star shine entered the room.

"Stella?" Abel reached for his glasses but Stella stopped him.

"I won't be here long, I just needed to see you."

Abel nodded, then motioned towards the bed. "Take a seat."

Stella for once did as she was told. Abel sat next to her on the barely-touched blankets. She suddenly hugged him. "You have no idea how much I missed you. All of you." Her voice seemed laden with pain. She drew away and stared at him pleadingly, begging him to understand. "Father Nightroad… please. Out of… out of everyone…" She took a deep breath. "I need you to understand… This is _my _job. _My_ responsibility. I can't let anyone else get hurt."

Abel smiled softly and waited for Stella to make eye contact with him. "Stella, believe me, I understand how you feel completely."

"But how can you?" Stella's voice cracked completely then. She started crying.

Abel drew her into a hug. He let her cry for a bit, knowing that she needed it. Finally, when she seemed to calm down some, he murmured into her hair. "Stella, I understand because about twenty years ago I was in the exact same position."

Stella batted angrily at her tears. "Father Nightroad, how…"

Abel smiled half-heartedly. "The Earl of Memphis, Ion, and I were hunting my brother, Cain. He was an awful wretch out to destroy all Terrans. Ten years into the hunt, Ion was hurt badly, that's where he received the scars on his face. I felt like it was my fault, I almost lost him. I left him in Barcelona, because I didn't want him to be hurt ever again. He yelled at me, and stayed mad for quite awhile, because he was convinced as much as I am to you now that he could help me in some way. I was away for twenty more. He's only in the past ten years been able to forgive me. I know how you feel, Stella. And I'm going to let you go."

"Thank you, Father Nightroad."

Abel smiled. "Really, after all we've been through together, you can't call me Abel?"

Stella stood and, before Abel knew what she was doing, she swiftly kissed him on the cheek. "Thank you, Abel." Before he could respond, she disappeared into the night.

**A/N: Kind of cliché, but you all can't tell me you didn't love that last paragraph. Review!**


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: this chapter was really hard to start and finish and I'm still not sure I like it.**

**Disclaimer: I own Trinity Blood no more than you do, unless of course you are the copyright owner, then you suck.**

Two men passed below the archways of the medieval mansion. The gargoyles glared down at them from the spiked towers. The snarling faces of the mythical creatures were only surpassed in awesome dread by their shadowed features that the moon cast upon them. One of the men looked up nervously.

"I swear, those things are multiplying. There's more of them every time, eh, Muntu?"

"Eh, ignore em, Feneid. Watch that un's head." Muntu grunted and pointed to a limp from that Feneid was holding.

The man adjusted the person that was over his shoulder. "Whaddaya suppose 'e needs so many people for?"

"Not fer us to be askin'. Come along, then, we're late."

The oak double doors closed and one of the 'gargoyles' stood. Stella's blue eyes glared down at the double doors as her hair and jacket whipped about in the classic 'spooky castle' way. She did her best to feel and think nothing, except for her task. _One thing at a time. No- bad! Stop thinking!_

The windows and doors no doubt had alarms on them and there were no grates. Stella jumped from the top of the castle to the ground below. She peeked into a window. It was a simple study, empty of both people and furniture. Her eyes strained, staring into the dark room.

A small squeak got her attention. She turned to see a rat, a small black rat squeezing out of a quarter-sized hole. (A/N: Rats can actually squish their skeletons down to the size of quarters.) The wretched creature began sniffing for food before its back legs were even out of the hole. Stella gently picked it up by the tail. It gave a terrified squeak, and went limp. Her eyes narrowed. She sniffed the rat and the same sickly sweet smell that seemed to follow her sister came to her. She smiled sardonically.

_That's their problem. They are using Lia to make artificial vampires, but the vampires are too hungry and die too easily. One good scare would be enough, though I doubt that Lia will die so effortlessly. _

She dropped the rat and as her eyes fell on the hole again, she got an idea. _I can't crush my bone structure, but I'm small enough to fit through some kind of hole, if there is one big enough._ She set about the castle, sometimes taking up to five minutes to scale the walls, looking for a break. The castle was extremely old, and basically crumbling. There had to be one somewhere.

She finally found one, not too high up, on the second story, just big enough for her to crawl though. She tensed and jumped, barely catching the lip. She scrambled inside, and began crawling.

It was a claustrophobic space, and she had to calm herself down, as the walls seemed to close in around her. _Small spaces, bad. _She thought. A few minutes later, she came to the space where the stone ended. There was a five-foot gap that went plunging to the foundation before the woodwork started. It was a very old castle, indeed.

_Please don't fall. Please don't fall. _She thought to herself. If she fell onto the collapsing stone foundation, she'd surely break something. Of course she always could heal super-fast, but it took so much energy. Energy she would need to kill her little sister. No, it was better if she didn't fall.

She made it to the wood and stood on the half-inch ledge. She risked it and knocked softly on the wood. Solid. She moved a few feet away and repeated the process. Solid. She moved again. The dark hole that she had come out of was gone now. She knocked and heard a small echo. Hollow. _Note to self: Thank Abel when I get back for dragging me to church. If I come back… Bad thought! One task at a time._

She punched a small hole through the wall. No one was in the room, at least as far as she could see. She kicked and punched the wall and it fell like cardboard beneath her blows. Soon she was in a room similar to the study she had seen on the lower floor. She cautiously opened the simple wooden door. The hallway was abandoned and it looked at if no one had stepped into it in years. If they had, Stella would have been able to see their footprints in the dust.

She walked carefully, and her footsteps were muffled on the wooden floor as if by carpet because of the thick blanket of filth. She poked her head around a corridor, anxiety building with her before she stepped down the abandoned hallways. She felt as if something would open the dark doors of jump out from the many shadowed hallways. She swallowed. _You are a Titan. The only thing that could hurt you here is your sister._

She subconsciously felt the back of her neck. She pressed down on her spine and could feel a small square. She gritted her teeth. The square was meant to keep her five feet away from her sister at all times. If she invaded her sister little circle, she would feel intense pain. Her parents had several times tried to remove it themselves, but they were shocked back each time. _That's her only weapon against me. She won't be able to do anything… as soon as I can overcome the pain._

The hallway gave was to a well-swept room. Steps leading both up and down were in front of her each staircase was clean and trodden upon often. _Which way… if it is up I'm boned. No way those victims can jump even three stories. Down would be best, but if I'm caught figuring out which way to go, they'll disappear again and I'll never find them. So. So. So down it is._

She quietly stepped down the first step and jumped over the railing. She landed catlike and crawled to a door. Steeling herself and taking a deep breath, she peeked into the room. Nothing. She crossed the hall and repeated the process with the other door. Someone was in there.

It was a young man, relaxing and almost asleep in a chair. The door creaked and he jumped. He looked wildly at Stella, who jumped on him and pulled out her silver dagger from her jacket. She slit his throat so he could not yell. He thrashed in his final throes, and then fell over dead.

_One task at a time._

**A/N: Another short chapter but its getting down to the final fight. But don't worry, this story is far from over. Review!**


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: Why is it so hard to start chapters?**

**Disclaimer: I'm not magic. I cannot magically change ownership of Trinity Blood.**

Stella snuck out of the room and felt strange. _Usually when I murder someone, I have people running after me. Oh well, there'll be enough later. _She though. A flash of light caught her eyes. She went to the steps. A door was built right into the woodwork. She reached for the handle and turned. The door opened.

_Funny, I was expecting alarms and guards. They are relying too heavily on Lysistrata… or not. _ Stella shuddered and started down the hallway. _I'm starting to wish I took Father Nightroad. No! No I'm not! I am glad I left them behind. They are safe. Grr… this is what I meant by stop thinking! _

There were dim lights every fifty feet or so. Definitely meant for Methuselah use. She went down a few steps. She felt a sharp pain in her neck that almost instantly went away. _She's close, but not too close. Bad. Got to find her first._

Stella stepped closer to the left until her shoulder was running along the wall, feeling for her sister. She felt a prickling in the back of her neck, like needles. She shivered at the thought. She continued on her way. She started to sweat when the slight itch of the prickling turned painful. Finally, a hand clasped over the top or her spine. She gasped.

_No. So close… so close. Keep going. Just a little longer… _Her arm ran over a cold surface. A steel door. Bright light was filtering out under the door. A shaking hand touched the doorknob; it opened easily. A sickly sweet smell hit her nose.

"Stella. I was wondering when you would catch up."

_Oh god… give me strength. _Stella set her face and stepped into the blinding white light. _I promised that I wouldn't take long… Abel._



Abel paced the room, not particularly thinking of anything, and not realizing that he was giving Leon a headache.

"Abel! If you don't sit down, I'm going to personally strap your ass to a chair!" Leon Sr. roared.

Abel looked up, startled by the sudden noise. "What? What is the call for such language, Father Leon?"

Leon growled to himself. In a patient tone, he spoke slowly, as if it would help Abel understand. "You haven't been the same since you got back from The Empire. And you know… you're not moping like you are supposed to be. I mean, from what I heard, the girl pretty much went to her death." Leon stated this gently, knowing that the girl had an affect on both his friend and his son.

Abel smiled and looked out the window. "That I know, but Stella's tough. When I went after Cain, everyone figured I was going to my death. Even you, isn't that right?"

Leon looked away and began to yank angrily at his habit. "Well, I suppose…" He mumbled.

Abel chuckled. "Don't feel bad, Leon. I know what you all thought. Several times I thought it myself. Stella will be all right." He said, but he was no longer talking to Leon.

He was telling myself, but every moment he was resisting the urge to sprout wings and fly to Stella's side… and her little kiss (which, of course, as a Father he barely remembered) was making it no easier. He had been devoting himself more and more to his church duties. Just that morning, he spent _three hours _sweeping out the entire cathedral.

Leon crossed his arms. "Abel, don't be surprised if she doesn't…"

"I know, Father Leon, I know." Abel said softly and sadly.

There was a pounding and Michael Leon burst into the room. "I am _never_ training with Huge again!" He shouted and draped himself dramatically across the bed.

Leon rolled his eyes and pushed his son off the bed, taking a seat there himself. "Yeah you are." He said gruffly.

Michael raised his head indignantly from the floor. "Hey! He's trying to make me look like him! I mean, look at this!"

He motioned to his leg. The adults looked down to see that the cloth was torn away savagely and the leg itself brushed, beaten and scratched. Leon Sr. chuckled.

"Hehe. That's Huge for you. He just doesn't want you to get hurt when it come time for you to do these things out in the field." Leon said, clapping his son over the head.

"Humph. Why can't you teach me?" Michael asked."

Leon motioned to his leg. "On this old thing? There is no way in hell that I am gonna teach you how to fight." He said, reaching for his cane to smack his son with. Abel very wisely moved it out of his grasp.

Michael left to his own room, and then Abel turned to his old friend. "Leon, you know that you are going to have to teach him eventually. He's quite capable and a lot like you. Soon he'll be actually using those disks of death you gave him for his fifth birthday."

Leon ran a hand through his still-thick hair and sighed. "I know Abel. If it were up to me, he wouldn't be involved in any of this at all."

Abel smiled. "I remember when you were that age, you and I were flying a busted plane to an island full of homicidal children. How is Peter, by the way?"

"What am I, his keeper? I was just doing my job, and now I'm saddled with keeping track of two vampire teenagers. As if Michael wasn't enough." Leon said.

Abel smiled. He knew that Leon had a soft spot for those kids. Peter was now working directly under Vanessa for the Movement. Wendy was a secretary for Virgil. They lived together in a tiny, one-room apartment and though they were both quite young, they already had their hearts set on getting married when they were older. Whenever they visited the Methuselah in Albion, Leon's leg would suddenly act up because of the 'damned drafty weather' and he would take five extra minutes to get up. Abel knew that he was giving Wendy some small gift like a flower or a tiny bottle of perfume and slipping Peter some money secretly. He also happened to know that Peter put all the money Leon gave him into a little cupboard that only Abel and Peter knew about. The money was meant to buy the pair a new house once they were married.

Thinking about those two put Abel in the best of mood he had been in all day and for a moment, he had forgotten his grief and regret. Of course, as he knew from experience, hurt could be ignored for the moment, but never totally went away. He would be reminded once again when he was struck later that night by the most foreboding feeling he had had since Stella was being beaten back in Dormaloone. _Something's wrong… but this time I can't help… please be okay, Stella._

**A/N: This chapter actually requires a bit of memory work here. You've got to do a little bit of remembering. The first thing you've got to remember was in the prequel, Lia's last words to Stella. That's around chapter twenty something… can't remember right now, but that won't be critical until next chapter. Next, you've got to remember that Leon trains with Huge now and that his father used those spinney disk things. The next thing that you've got to remember is the fairies in the Neverland episode, Peter and them. Last, you have to remember what happened in the third chapter of the prequel, between Stella and the guards when the Emperor was still in power. Wow. That's a lot of remembering. Oh well. Some stuff you gottan know, others you don't, so I just outlined some stuff that some of you might not remember. Review!**


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: all I have to say is, thank god I don't have school tomorrow. **

**Disclaimer: NNNNNNOOOOOOOTTTT MMMMMIIIIINNNNNEEEEE. Got it?**

Stella didn't answer, but blinked as her pupils dilated against the harsh light. Her sister always loved bright white light, though everyone else in the family preferred the night or at least the yellow light of dim bulbs and the sun when their sensitive eyes wouldn't be burned.

The room was white, which made the light that much more unbearable, and made up of paneled walls that were cleaned so meticulously that they were like mirrors. Lia's small form was sitting in a completely white bed that seemed to grow out of the wall. The room was completely totally clean. Not one speck of dirt or dust for the 'precious angel'. Of course, being in the same room as the abomination made Stella have the insane need to wash herself… or at least it would have if the small chip was sending her brain warning signals to not get any closer.

The only things that weren't white were also the only things that gave Stella any source of comfort. It was the cup of dazzlingly blue water, more likely than not drugged. Good. Less focus for sister. The other was the many cords and tubes attached to her sister, taking blood from her and shoving drugs in. Perfect. Stella just needed to detach them. Which meant getting over her pain in coming within a five-foot radius of her sister.

Lia herself looked awful, and if Stella had been human, she would have lost it right there and then and thrown up. She swallowed harshly and looked upon what was supposed to be her sister.

Lysistrata looked nothing like her or Demetry. Her entire family had the dark hair and blue eyes, though Stella alone had the red streaks. When Lia was young, her eyes and hair were white. Her pupils would stand out alone in her eyes, looking small and making her look all the more evil. She was pale and she always wore white. She was beautiful in a completely terrifying way.

Now, she was no longer beautiful, but she still was terrifying. Her clothes were still stained as they were her last night and hung off of her like they would a broom. She still looked like a five-year old, even though Demetry and Stella had aged over the decades. Her hair had aged though, turning silver and her white eyes were bloodshot and demented. Her face was dead or completely torn away in some places, as if it had started decaying of its own accord. Her left cheek was so damaged that Stella could see her molars, even though her mouth was shut. The little Titan smiled at her sister.

"Don't like what you see?" Her voice was that of a grown woman, and it was disconcerting to hear it from such a small mouth.

"Lia…" Stella began weakly. She was disgusted at herself for loosing her nerve so quickly. "I don't care-"

"Don't lie to me." Lia said coldly. "You're repulsed by me. I can see it in your eyes. My very existence makes you sick. You want to kill me, but I won't let you. _They _won't let you. They'll come like before and kill you this time. And now, I'll see inside your mind so they can go after the ones you love most!" The girl's voice rose to hysterical pitch.

Lia made eye contact with Stella, and the older girl knew she was sunk. _No…_ Pictures of her friends rose in her head without her willing them to, and she fell to her knees. _Kate…Seth… Ion… Tres…Leon…Demetry… Abel! _She put her hands out to steady herself.

"My, my, sister. It seems you've gotten busy since I've died. Three world leaders and three fathers. I'm almost jealous. William!"

One of the panels near the bed opened and a dark man stepped out. Stella's heart jumped as she recognized his bone structure. It was the same man she had followed all the way from Rome.

"Yes, Lysis-" The man began tiredly.

"Don't begin to give me that crap." She pouted childishly. "My sister has more friends than me. I want you to kill her and then I want you to find all of her friends and kill them too." It was amazing how she could from looking like a horribly disfigure child to a sadistically grinning psychopath.

The man seemed to just notice Stella. "Kill her? But she seems like such a good… caa!"

Stella hadn't waited. The drugged water in the cup next to her sister hardened to a sinister point and flew through the man's left eye from the back. He fell over, dead. Her sister let out an unearthly screech. Four black shapes came to the door immediately and two sunk in through the floor. Stella took out her daggers and prepared herself.

The two from above rushed at her, one scratching her shoulder before each of them had her silver daggers through their hearts. The four faceless enemies laughed despite their fallen comrades. _Damn!_

"We'll just have to fight hand to hand." Stella said calmly, putting herself into her ready postion.

The men drew guns from their cloaks. _Double_ _Damn!_



Abel sat bolt right in bed. Something had happened, he was sure of it. His skin crawled and he had the distinct feeling that something bad had happened. There was nothing for it, though. At the least, it would take him two days to find Stella if he left at that instant. He hoped she would be all right.

He smiled wryly. _If this is what I put you through, Esther, then there is no way I could ever make it up to you._ _I'd honestly rather be with her dying right now than sitting here wondering._ He gripped the blankets tighter as he imagined what could be happening. _I am a complete idiot! I just let her go!_

He jumped out of bed as if just realizing the implications of what he had done. He quickly dressed. Pulling his hair up, he walked (more like ran) down the corridors and steps until he was out on the cobblestone. He went to the infirmary building. It was the only place besides the Cardinal's office that had a holographic projector. He really didn't want to wake up Kate. He dialed the number.

**A/N: Oh, wonder what Abel's doing? Review!**


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N: Gotta love that tension!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Trinity Blood, and if you are reading this, neither do you.**

Stella didn't scream. There wasn't time and she didn't have the energy. She just took it. All of it. Three bullets, one in the abdomen two in the chest. She spat put blood and tried to control her feral stage. Her eyes were wild and she was tearing through bodies with her bare hands. She cut halfway through a head. Blood was in running puddles on the floor. Lia screamed.

One of the Methuselah's sword point hands went straight through her shoulder from behind. She ripped it out from the wrist, cleaving the limp hand in. The man screamed before her fangs, which had grown three times as large, sank into his throat.

_Last… one. _Stella, who had been fighting so hard against her wild side, now clung to it to destroy her sister. She took a step towards the bed. Lia screamed and raised a hand. The IV was ripped out and sent hurtling at Stella. She managed to keep it away from her vital organs, but it banged into her leg painfully.

_No. I will not give up. I will NOT GIVE UP!_ She grabbed her dagger from the back of the long dead vampire. With a final heave and roar, she lunged at her sister. Her sister scrabbled and cut her back shallowly with her long fingernails. There was a crunch as the dagger sunk into her white eye.



"Right, thank you. I will see you in the morning." The last of Abel's calls made, he sank against the wall.

As the night went on, his feeling of fear sunk into full on dread and knowing that something was not right. He stifled a small sob with his hands.

"Oh please, mighty father in heaven above, protect Stella. She is a good person and whether she knows it or not, she had always striven to do your bidding of good and protection. Amen."

He sat there for an hour before walking out the door with nothing but the clothes on his back.



Stella lifted her heavy head. She was dizzy and tired from blood loss. She looked up and fell back with a terrified gasp. Her sister's eye was a mess and blood dribbled from the corner of her mouth. Sparks flew from the ceiling and where her sisters had thrown machines in her death throes.

Stella looked down to see she had fallen into a puddle. The vampire it belonged to's head stared at her with lifeless eyes. The carnage and the knowledge that she did it got to her. She was physically sick.

When she was done, she took a gun from the lifeless grasp of one of the Methuselah. _Better safe than sorry. _She pulled her self shakily into a standing position. As her back hit the wall, she felt something between her and the panel. She looked behind her. A blackened hand with long, thick needlelike fingernails was still through her shoulder. She attempted to pull it out, and screamed. It was too deep.

_Got to do this quick, not sure how long I'm going to last with these wounds. _She left the room and entered the holding chambers.

Unlike the one Abel, Tres, and herself were held in, this one had three cells. One for the human and Methuselah sacrifices, one for the experiments, and the last one for the crazed victims of the experimentations. She approached the cell with the crazed experiments.

They screamed and ranted about nonsensical things. They tore at their hair and ran around in circles. She touched the bars of the cage gently and they rushed at her. She drew back. Their clawed hands reached out as if to grab her. They bared their teeth and bit at each other in their wild attempts to reach her.

Tears stung her eyes. She couldn't take them with her, and they were far too gone to help. The building had to be destroyed, and to send them out into the world would be sentencing them and many others to a gruesome death. There was only one thing to do. And if hurt her more than the fact that she had just murdered her little sister.

Her shaking hand raised and she took aim. Once. Bang! Twice. Bang! Thrice. Bang! When the last one fell, a child no older than ten, Stella fell as well. She placed a hand over her mouth, stifling her sobs. _You can still save the others, pull yourself together! _

She stood shakily and walked in front of the other two cells. The pale people within drew away from her. They had heard what she done. Her blood-drenched skin, hair, and clothes were marks of her sin. _At least they have the sense to back away. _She thought grimly.

"Please…" She trailed off. Her voice surprised her. It was hollow, empty, and hoarse. "Please, don't be afraid. I'm here to help." They seemed to relax warily. "I'm going to set you out, but you've got to help each other!" she said fiercely. Nothing could be worse than if they trampled each other getting out. "Everything is going to get easier, but you need to help the ones weaker than you. Are there any children here without mothers or fathers?" A few tentatively stepped forward. She stepped forward as well and squatted down. "Are you all okay?" They nodded. She stood again. "Is there anyone here who can take these children?" Some gaunt people stepped forward and placed their hands on the children's shoulders. She nodded her thanks. "You must make for the Empire, an hour's march from here is a town that has already been paid to give you horses. Go straight to the Empire, do not stop, and ask for Ion Fortuna, the Earl of Memphis. I will be along in a day or two to meet you."

She moved forward and punched the wall dividing the two cells. A giant hole appeared, large enough for two small adults to squeeze through. Stella went ahead of them and carefully avoided the room that held her sister. She opened a door and saw that they were a little farther along the hallway that she had come in from. She motioned to the others and leaned against the wall opposite the door. As the exodus left, she topped the last person, a young man whose color had not totally left his face yet. "When the last of the people are out of the main door, yell down to me. You all will have about ten minutes after that to get as far away from here as possible."

He nodded his head once, to substitute for a bow. "My lady and savior, who are you? What are you? From which country do you come?"

Stella smiled sadly. "I used to be Stella Icheart, the Titan, born and bred in the country Kenpachi and currently living in Rome. Now, though, I am not so sure."

The man nodded wisely. "We all were dragged into this castle different people. When you find out who you are, tell me." He let, jogging up the hall with as much strength as an emancipated man in his prime could.

When she got the signal, Stella went back to the room and took one of the sparking plugs. She tied it around he sister's body and the dry bed sheets and hair caught fire. The last she ever saw of her sister was the insane half-grin from where her cheek was pulled away.

She left the castle and ran as far as she could as fast as she could. Eventually, she had no energy left and she sunk to the moist earth, not caring whether or not she would inhale too much smoke. Soon, all that was left of the evil castle in the distance was a smoldering pile of ash and the memories of what it had served for.

She rested her head as the heavens opened themselves and began to rain. "I wonder, now that my mission is complete, if I am still myself. I wonder what my purpose will be now."

**A/N: Aww, so sad. This chapter is about three times longer than it is supposed to be and I'm still not sure how good it is. Personally, it would be one of my favorites, but that's because I can see the fighting scenes in my mind, what really matters is what you thought of it. Review!**


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N: Everyone liking it? Good.**

**Disclaimer: You know what, I think you have short-term memory loss. I just said this eighteen hours ago! I Do ****Not****, repeat**** Not ****Own Trinity Blood.**

Abel nervously walked down the hallway. As he neared his destination, he looked up at the sound of footsteps coming towards him. He looked into Demetry's blue eyes, which seemed less bright and his set face. His dark clothes hung off him as if he had not been eating and though his face stayed line free (just as Abel's would), but it was still drawn with worry.

Abel imagined that they both had the same expression. They had been called to Ion's office in the castle, which turned out to be the same room they had been in when Stella ran away for the second time, a little while ago. They had guessed what it was about and each had prepared themselves for the worst.

Demetry had arrived a day ago when Abel had first called. Normally, the trip would have taken three days, took one when Seth sent a special jet for him. Over thirteen hours ago, there had been loud noises from downstairs. When they had gone to investigate, Seth was at the top of the third floor steps, intercepting them. She suggested that they get some rest, but be prepared to go to Ion's office at any time. And when the Queen of the Empire suggests something you do it, even if she was half your size and acted like a teenager.

Abel nodded to Demetry and the Leader went into the room. Abel followed, and shut the door after him. A young emancipated man sat in one of the chairs at the table in the room. He wrung his hands. Ion nodded at some of the chairs. His normally cheery face was tired and worried.

"Abel, Leader Demetry…"

"Demetry." Demetry said automatically. Abel smiled slightly at the resemblance of the two Titan siblings.

Ion nodded once. "Fourteen hours ago, you no doubt heard the commotion downstairs. That was thirty-six emancipated people walking through the halls of the palace. They were recently freed from a mansion in the name of a Charles Onigoma, inherited from his father, Charles Onigoma Senior. They each claim to have been saved by a woman in dark, blood-drenched clothing. She was very kind to them, and disappeared back into the castle after freeing them from their cells. Minutes later, the mansion burned to the ground. The woman hasn't been seen since." Ion reported in his stoic manner that he usually took up when dealing with Security issues. "I will let Mau take over."

The man bobbed his head and wrung his hands. "I- we…"

"Just start from the beginning." Abel said kindly.

The man sighed.



To start from the beginning would be the best and worse place to start. I was only brought in a few months ago, but some people have been there for a _year_. They would drag us in, shoot us up with some drug or another and dump us in the cell for a few weeks. The drug made me tired for days, to the point where I sat on the floor, resting, not even getting up to relieve myself.

They starved us and kept water from us. We… got these insane urges… I started to wonder what flood and fresh meat would taste like. I can still remember when the badness stared. I thought 'I bet blood would quench my thirst'. I silenced my thoughts, but not for long.

A week later new people were brought into the cells, and they were in the same state I was in, but their drug was different, we could tell. One of them… a young girl… was struggling. We all had these sixth senses; we all knew that several of them would die.

Three nights later, one of us started it. I can't remember whom, but all at once, there were blood and gargling noises. They killed without a sound and quickly too. I remember thinking 'If I don't move quickly, I will not get any.' I was truly the animal then. I leapt to the closest thing to me, the girl, and ripped her throat out.

The taste was awful, the feeling worse. But I kept going. I yelled and screamed to stop, I wanted to very badly, please sirs, and you must believe me! I could not, and I did not. A few hours later, it was over, flesh was gone and bones were piled in a corner. But some of us did not want to stop.

Some of them looked at the others with the same gleam in their eyes. They never really lost it. They whispered plans out loud, but they thought that they were in their head. They lost their minds, and never gained it back.

The next day, at one of the times they shut the lights off, our keepers came. They sprayed us down with hoses and drugged us again, but instead of making us tired, we were if anything more alert, but paralyzed. They took us one by one into a room that was attached to our cell room.

When I was brought in, the first thing I noticed was the smell. It was sickly sweet, like that of something that has been rotting for a long time. I saw a little girl, except she wasn't. She looked dead and spoke like she was one of the insane ones, a child, and an evil woman all in one. Her face was half rotting.

In the corner, the demented ones were huddled, drugged to make them tired and bound. The evil child pointed at me and said that I could not fulfill her purposes and that she would not eat one as scrawny and sour looking as me. I was pushed back into my cell. From then on, we were kept in darkness, listening to the deranged voices in the other cell.

Then one day she came. Our angel drenched in blood, though we didn't know it at the time. We heard things on the other side of the wall, then screaming. Our keepers burst in from one door and went into the room with that abomination. More screams and sounds I dare not remember. Then everything fell silent.

Hours later, a young woman dressed in dark, bloody clothes walked in. She walked up to our deranged friends and family and… shot them all… Sirs, I know that she did it because she had to, but… it sounded so, so wrong. Please forgive my tears sirs, but I spoke with those men before they became creatures. I heard their life stories! One man was a scientist. Another was a clergyman for the Vatican. We watched them spend their final months as monsters, killing each other for food, and we watched the woman kill them.

She came to us then, and I am not ashamed to say that I shrunk back like a child. I was truly afraid of what she would do to us, and I ignored my instincts. She began talking and I thought that her voice would be like our keepers, rough and curt, or it would be like the ones of the children who first come to our prison, light and free. It was neither. It was trapped by its own bindings. It was tired. It was sad and longing.

She asked for us to help each other. She stressed this, and the way she plead it bound our hearts together. She told us where to go and what to do. She made sure that even the children were taken care of. And even before she freed us from our cells, we were set free, and our hearts much lighter than hers.

She caught me before she left, and told me to yell to her when everyone was out and safe. I followed her instructions, though I must say, my heart was loath to let her stay in that place longer than she should have. Minutes later, there was a crackle. A few minutes after that, the castle crashed on it crumbling figure and was gone. But, so was our angel.



The narration was full of tears, sobs, sighs and helpless motions. It wasn't easy to tell, nor to hear. But it was one of those things that had to be done, for the sake of all. Mau looked up, his tear-stained face staring into the others' men. Abel face was blank but his blue eyes were sad. Demetry's face was buried in his hands and he coughed a few times. Ion had gotten up to stare out the window sometime during the narration, and drops of blood reached the floor from where his nails dug into his hands.

"Please. You three know more about the angel than you are telling. I can see it in your eyes and in your figures. Tell me, who is she? And is she still alive?" The man practically begged.

Ion went back to his seat, steepling his fingers and leaning forwards, though his eyes were glazed and unfocused. As he did this, Demetry stood up and walked forward until his back was to all of them. He took in a deep breath. "The woman you are referring to, your savior, your angel drenched in blood. She is my sister. As is the demented child."

The man's eyes widened. "But that's… not possible…" He trailed off and looked apologetic. "I'm sorry, sir. Truly I am. I did not mean to call her…"

Demetry waved a hand, his back still to them. "You are right. She is demented, evil and so much more. Or was, as I should say. Stella did what she always wanted to do." He said sadly. Abel could see the tears that were falling from his face to the floor.

Mau turned to Abel. "And what of you? Certainly you are not another brother, and you were obviously brought here fro a reason."

Demetry turned around and smiled lightly. "Abel, I believe you have competition for my little sister's heart."

Abel was startled to say the least, but not so much that he was brought out of his somber mood. "I am no lover of Stella's, but I am her dearest friend."

Mau held up his hands. "Believe me, sir. Even if you were, you would have no competition from me. I mean, I love her with all my heart. I would lay down my life for hers, but I would do so only as a deep friend."

Abel's mouth twitched. "Stella is a woman all her own. And her kindness stretches far. I believe that not even the strictest clergyman could hold any of her actions against her."

"Let us hope that stretches as far as to your god, Abel. Let's find my sister!" Demetry said, a little of his spark entering his eyes.

Ion cleared his throat. "Mau, thank you. You may go back downstairs now." When Mau had left, Ion turned to Demetry. "Demetry, I have no one to spare to go look for your sister, and as much as I would like you to go gallivanting off by yourself, it is not wise. The tremulous fate of your country lies with you and getting yourself lost or hurt could lead to something catastrophic. That and I've been filled into what happens in when Stella is in her maddened state. Am I correct in guessing…"

"Yes." Demetry said half-heartedly. "I have even less control than my sister. And you are right." He said, closing his eyes. "If I saw my sister d…" He couldn't say it. "Anything other than in the shape she left it, I would loose it and not gain it back."

"That is why I believe Abel should go."

Abel was startled. And he felt accepting would be trespassing on unknown ground. He looked to Demetry who sighed heavily and nodded reluctantly.

"Find my sister, Abel Nightroad."

**A/N: I'm not going to say anything so I don't ruin the moment. Review!**


	14. Chapter 14

**A/N: Glad to se you all like the story. I'm gonna say everything I have to say now because the end of the chapter has to retain its good ending. So please review and enjoy. Cheese!**

**Disclaimer: I do not, repeat not, own Trinity Blood, though I wish I did. (Sad face)**

Abel stood in the slight drizzle on the pile of ash that was clumped on the brown land. There wasn't any grass for miles, just dark brown soil, rocks, dead trees from the in between autumn and winter phase and, of course, the huge stonewall that hadn't burned. He stared at the death a desolation of the place emotionlessly; there was nothing there that could link him to Stella. The mansion had been completely burned down despite its size; the wooden walls were completely dry and made for good timber. The stones were so old that a good knock all but disintegrated the brick.

He moved forward through the soot, until he saw a shape in the damp powdery substance. He picked it up and blew the dust off. "AHH!" he dropped what was the remains of a Methuselah hand. It crumbled on impact.

Suddenly it seemed as if there were many shapes rising from the ground. He saw skulls and bones, all blackened by the fire. His feet moved by themselves to the back of the necropolis. Out of the ribcage of the last of the skeletons were wires.

This skeleton was smaller than the rest, and the bones were mutilated slightly. The teeth were smaller than Methuselah, but bigger and sharper than Terran. It spine was twisted and one of its arms broken, but the way they were fixated, they were broken long ago.

_Decades. _Abel thought, suddenly realizing that this small, mutated creature was Stella's sister. Though he felt a pang of revulsion for doing so, he felt sympathy for this pathetic thing. _They didn't even bother to fix her broken bones after they found her all those decades ago._

"Please grant these wretches safe passage and have mercy on their souls." Abel said, numbly making the cross against his chest. He swallowed hard and continued on.

Sadly, there was nothing that ever showed him any sign of Stella except on dagger. The silver had been blackened and it would not longer serve to fight anymore. He stuck it in his cloak with some sort of reverence. He walked from the mansion.

_This would have been so much easier if I had waited to get Tres! _Abel thought in his frustration. He mentally cursed at himself. _Wait! Stop! Now go back. _He stepped backwards and stopped down. A boot print. It was rather small and had no extravagant designs on it. It was deep in the ground, so the person had been running when they had stepped down.

Abel's heart nearly stopped beating. There were footprints all the way to the forest, less than one hundred yards away. He followed them, accidentally straying from the path once or twice in his excitement. He stopped at a slight hill. There were sliding marks. He was about to walk down carefully when…

"Ah! OH!"

Yes, he fell down the hill. He slid down until he was finally able to stop himself. He panted slightly and scrambled for his glasses. As he did, he caught a flash of white. He slipped them back on his nose (ignoring the fact that he didn't really need them) and cried out a strangled sob-scream.

There she was. Pale, unconscious, bleeding and obviously in a very unnatural position but there she was. Stella. Abel crawled over to her. She indeed was a blood-drenched angel, at least to him.

"Stella." He said hoarsely. She didn't respond. "Stella?"

He picked her up slowly. He frowned when he felt a lump on her back. He hugged her close to him, and looked around her shoulder. It was here that he suppressed the urge to retch. A hand, a dead Methuselah hand that had been brutally ripped off by… something. The totality that Stella wasn't a Terran or Methuselah sunk in. He never was more aware that she was _different. _Just as he was _different. _He wondered briefly if that was what everyone else saw, when he was in his most terrifying form.

He pulled the hand's long nails from her shoulder. It came out with dried blood and a new wound that bled freshly. The metallic smell was heavy around her, and this new addition was just as awful if not more so. He sat her on one of his legs, her chin resting on his shoulder and his arm supporting her waist. He stared at the hand in revulsion.

"Am I still not a monster now, Father Nightroad?" Abel jumped. Stella's tired eyes were open and looking at him sadly. "I can see it in your eyes, you know. You are disgusted by what I have done." She let out a shot bark-like hysterical laugh. "Hell, _I'm_ sickened by what I have done. So, will you leave this monster to die in her final peace?" She lost whatever little energy she had then, and her head slumped against his shoulder.

Abel threw the hand away and hugged her close. "Stella, please. Don't…" he couldn't say the word aloud. "Just don't. I'm going to get you help. Demetry's just a few hours away. Hang on for him."

Stella chuckled. "Why should I?" Her gaze grew faraway and her eyesight clouded. "There is no point of me living more. She is dead." She half-snorted, making an 'humph' sound. "I wonder what mother and father will say when I get to the place you call heaven, Father Nightroad…"

"Stop talking like that." Abel said firmly, willing himself to move to cut off her terrible words. He hoped beyond all hope that this was some delirious speech from blood loss.

Stella ignored him. "Maybe they will welcome me with open arms. Or maybe not. Perhaps they will look upon me with disdain. I killed their child, after all. I killed the good one. How ironic." She smiled a crooked smile. "Scratch that. I do not think I shall get to your heaven at all, Father Nightroad. I shall go into the deepest pits of hell. I do not deserve the consideration of even the worst of angels."

Abel had finally willed himself to get up, and now he was running carefully through the wood. The drizzle made it all the harder. She was cold as ice; it was like carrying a wet rag doll. "Stop, Stella." He commanded. "I know no one of this great Earth more deserving of a place in heaven than you."

Stella turned her head towards him with great difficulty. "Father Nightroad, there is no need to hurry. This monster has lived the last of her days."

Abel glanced down at her face. Her cloudy eyes closed for what he prayed was not the last time. He tripped on the wet muddy ground. His ankle hurt terribly, but he crawled to where the Titan's body lay. He held her to him.

"Stella! You are not a monster!" he screamed to the gray heavens. "STELLA! YOU ARE NOT A MONSTER!"

**A/N: Review! **


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N: Not smiling. Not smiling. Not smiling… Go watch Foamy the Squirrel if you want to smile.**

**Disclaimer: Again, go watch Foamy the Squirrel. **

"Father Abel Nightroad. Status report: Unconscious. Minor lacerations on upper thigh, lower triceps, and right face."

"Thank…"

"Updated Status report: Minor lacerations seventy five percent healed. Consciousness gaining." Tres cut whoever else was in the room off.

Abel was suddenly aware that he was very warm and no longer wet. There was a lock of hair across his closed eyes, but he was so comfortable that he didn't want to move it.

"Abel?" Someone whispered. Their voice was tired but hopeful… Ion.

"Are you all right?" That was Demetry…. Demetry!

Abel sat up panting. "What! What's going on?" He looked around the room. _Everyone_ was there except… "What happened to Stella?"

Demetry smiled. "Wow. You carry her until you pass out, and then as soon as you come to, you're worrying again. I knew I left her in good hands… omph!"

Abel's eyes followed the red clothed elbow that was poking Demetry in the stomach. Vanessa, who had by this time heard about Demetry threatening him oh so long ago, smiled at him. "Hey, Nightroad. How you doing?"

"Fine, but… what's going on?"

Crowded in the small but lavish room were nearly all of his friends. At his left, Tres stood, staring off into space. Next to his left hand, Michael Leon looked at him with worried eyes. He had no doubt that Leon Senior would have been there to were it not for his disdain of traveling on his bad leg. Seth was at the end of the bed, looking cheerful as always, but her true age showed through with her fatigued eyes. Astha and Ion were at the corner and right side of the bed. Astha had a ghost of a smile on her lips and Ion was all-out grinning. Vanessa stood at Asth'a side, sending Demetry little warning glances when it seemed he was going to speak. Demetry, finally, stood next to his right side, smiling and retaining that schoolboy look that had been gone from his face ever since his sister had left.

"Well, big brother. You've been unconscious for two days." Seth smiled optimistically.

"Two days! How…. what…" It was here that Abel started his little freak out.

"All right, everybody, out. Abel needs rest." Seth said firmly, sounding like a little mother.

Everyone but Demetry and Vanessa left. Abel guessed that since they were each power holders in another nation, Seth had no say over what they did. When there was enough room, Vanessa moved to the other side of the bed and sat in the chair Leon had vacated. Demetry had his own seat and Seth, ever the short one, had to sit on the edge of Abel's normal four-poster bed so that she would still be seen as a Queen as they talked.

"Abel, how are you feeling?" Seth asked softly.

"Fine, Seth, what happened?" Abel asked, the urgency in his voice not hidden.

Though he had truthfully said he felt fine a few minutes ago, now he was lying. His back hurt terribly and he had cold aches all throughout his body. The ache he could explain away from when he had fallen, but the back was not so easily taken care of. Oddly enough, the ache seemed familiar.

Seth frowned. "No you're not. Abel, do you know what happened?"

It was Abel's turn to frown. "Well… no."

Seth sighed. "Two days ago, we saw a dark speck on the horizon. Three minutes later, you landed in our rose courtyard, carrying Stella big brother, at eighty percent." She said, referring to the nanomachines.

Abel's blue eyes widened. "What? No. I couldn't have… I don't even remember changing…"

Seth fidgeted in her long green dress before fishing something out. She held up a black feather, slightly curled and extremely fragile. "I picked this up off the ground."

Abel gently took it from her. He looked at it for long minutes before looking into the others' faces. "Why won't you tell me what's happening to Stella?" He asked gravely.

Seth looked grim. "Abel, you know we're doing everything for her… but… there are some wounds that our medicine cannot heal."

Abel's hands clenched the blue fabric of the soft thin, blanket tightly. "What's wrong?"

"She… she won't wake up." Demetry said, trembling. "All of her readings say she's getting better but… she won't wake up."

Abel looked down at his now-white knuckles, not really seeing anything. She wouldn't wake up? Why? Had she killed herself or put herself in a coma on _purpose? _No, that was the coward's way out. She wouldn't do that.

_Still, the way she talked… so hopelessly. Her eyes were lifeless. That's because she was almost lifeless, idiot! _He berated himself silently. He was making excuses.

He looked up to see that everyone had left. How long had he been thinking? He sighed and got up. His priest's clothes had been removed, washed, and draped across the wardrobe directly across from his bed. He ignored just once his invasion of privacy (A/N: Remember he didn't like that in the second or third chapter of Heart of Ice, Heart of Fire.) He changed quickly and pulled his hair back. He looked for his glasses and briefly lamented the hairline scratches they had from falling in the forest.

He stepped out of the room and looked down the deserted corridor. That was strange. It was only a few hours past noon, at the very least a few servants should have been around. He shrugged it off as his feet took him down the hallways and steps. Everyone now and then he was vaguely aware of eyes watching him from cracked doors. He made a mental note to hug his sister when he next saw her.

He stopped and frowned. The soft carpet or the smooth wood underneath his feet was gone. He blinked and his eyes refocused. Stone was beneath him. He looked around. He was in a garden. It was near the heart of the castle, so it was totally incased in stone. Even the door had a stone look so it blended in with the walls.

The ground, in a half-circle, was the stone, slightly green and damp from the recent drizzle. Around him, though he didn't notice it at the time, little black feathers were blown into lonely corners by a small gust of could wind. What was left of the square garden from where the stone patio ended was green grass with dark green bushes. Rose bushes. The buds were gone, such as the natural order goes in winter. The vines of pink crawler roses crept to the top of the wall and beyond, probably to one of Seth's favorite gardens on the roof.

Abel smiled sadistically. Had this been a fairytale, Stella would somehow magically appear, bruises and cuts gone, completely and totally happy. The flowers would have bloomed and the sky bright. She would have smiled at him and sat down like nothing was wrong and probably once again shown him the superior senses of Titans to Terrans. Or if it had been an older book, she would have still come down, a patch on her cheek, and stood with him, talking of what happened. He would have comforted her and they would have returned home, mentally bruised but still happy.

But he looked up at the rain-washed sky and reminded himself that this defiantly was _not _a story. He was outside, alone, in an unbloomed garden in the wet outside, wishing that the woman somewhere in that big castle would wake up and be all right, when it was so obvious that she was hurt and damaged, and would be that way for a long time to come.

_Did she give up life right in front of me? Or was it before I got there? _Abel's eyes widened._ Did she give up on life _because _of me? If she hadn't seen me, would she have been all right? She might not have thought of heaven and hell. If it weren't for me, she wouldn't even _know_ about them. Would she have been happier if I had just left her there in that forest, her corpse so close to her sister's? Did she truly want to die, or was that her fevered delirium talking?_

_Did I do the right thing? _Abel wondered suddenly. _To bring her back was good for Demetry, good for me. But what about her? Perhaps she would have been better off in that forest, alone. She might have been saved by her own body, she is a Titan, after all. Then she could have made her own decision._

_Stella, what did I do to you?_

**A/N: Yes I know that the fourth chapter from here isn't grammatically correct. It's called Writer's leeway. Yes, that is real. Sorry if this is sounding a little redundant, but repeating stuff is kind of necessary. Review!**


	16. Chapter 16

**A/N: Hey, this chapter is dedicated to my good friend Lady Sadfire (Shari). I hope everything turns out okay, hon. (You know what I'm talking about). Good luck and many smiles!**

**Disclaimer: Truthfully, I'm considering paying for the medication that will take care of your short term memory loss problem.**

Stella mentally sighed. _I can't stay here forever. I know that but… it feels so nice. Warm and safe. So why does it look so awful?_

Clouds of gray blue mist surrounded her, and sitting on a black desert floor. Dead skeletons of bushes and trees surrounded her, and a sense of dread pervaded her body. Still, her body was as warm and comfortable as if she was under a heavy comforter, in a bed.

_If I close my eyes and forget the looks of this place, I will surely go to sleep and stay here for the rest of my life. _She suddenly felt something in her wrist, and she dully looked at it. The mist seemed to shrink back a bit. This thing… this feeling was unknown to this land. Her shoulder began to hurt and she put her opposite hand on it, squeezing to relieve the pressure.

_Why… why does my arm feel so? I know I got hurt in some way, but I can't remember how. I also know that I should feel hurt, but this is nothing more than a tingle, a ghost of what should be there._

Suddenly she remembered. Everything. Every detail of the fight. Killing her sister and all those Methuselahs. The two small warts on the man's severed hand. The crunch of her sister's cornea. Every sickening detail.

Her breath shortened and her abdomen hurt. _Please… stop the pain… it hurts! _Her throat was being torn apart by the scream she could not utter in that world. So she uttered it in the next.



"Abel!"

Abel's head snapped up from the book he was pretending to read. Ever since Sister Noelle died, everyone had watched him carefully for bouts of depression. When his dear Esther died, his depression was so deep that it took many good whacks from Leon Sr.'s cane to get him to pretend to be happy. The thing was, he just wasn't strong enough to go through another death, and so soon after Esther's. If Stella were to die, it would kill him. And everyone knew it.

So he busied himself and hid behind his gossamer curtain of fake optimism. Leon stood in the center of the small library, panting and looking harried. "Yes, what is it, Leon?"

"Don't give me that crap! Stella's awake!"

"What?" As a reflex, Abel stood up, allowing the book to drop to the floor.

"Come on, I haven't seen her yet!" Leon bolted out of the room.

Abel followed him quickly, barely taking in breath. He followed him upstairs and into a room a couple of doors away from his own. He had not realized she was so close. As soon as the door opened, he realized only one thing, though this room was so much different from any other.

No, all he had sense for right now was the screaming. He knew where it came from, but he had never heard someone so terrified. He couldn't get to the bed without running Leon over; still he came close enough to tell Leon to move.

Demetry was at his sister's bedside, his hand on her temple and omitting a strange light, for all the little good it did. Though she was still unconscious, Stella's hands were clasped tightly over her mouth, muffling the screams. She was sweating slightly and she was so pale that her dark hair looked like a stain on the white bed. It was… more than disconcerting to see such a strong woman in such a vulnerable state.

A few minutes later, Seth, Ion and Vanessa had joined them. She stopped screaming and Demetry moved her hands back to her sides. He sat in a small wooden chair and with a sad sigh, leaned his elbows on his long legs. He placed his forehead on his clasped hands and did not move when Vanessa made a small motion of encouragement by putting her hand on his shoulder.

Now that all was silent, Abel looked around the room. The windows were high up, and circles, trying hard to give the room a hapier look. The room had never been painted or even used, so there was no furniture besides the bed and many pieces of equipment, currently trying to pump life back into the small woman on the bed. Had Stella not needed so many machines, including a breathing mask, she probably would have been in a much more lavish room. As it was, the room seemed something of a cross between a prison cell and a hospital bedroom.

Abel was the first to notice. A small groan or a sigh, he could not remember which, not that it mattered. His attention moved from her brother back to Stella. Her eyelids were twitching, as if the eye underneath was moving rapidly. He wanted to bring this to the attention of the others, but his voice died in his throat as a bright blue eye opened.

Stella slowly got up, and as slowly as she moved, so too was the attention of everyone in the room drawn to her. She leaned on her right elbow and left hand, using them to push herself up, and then put both hand behind her, so she was leaning on them. She slowly took the breathing mask off and set it on a bedside table. She looked around the room and made eye contact with each of them. Abel's heart jumped into his throat as she looked at him, and his mouth opened slightly.

She smirked. "Have you all taken to eating flies while I've been gone?"

"STELLA!" There were three yells as three joy-overcome men jumped on her. Vanessa and Seth gave them their moment by quickly and quietly slipping out of the room.

Stella hugged her friends back. "You guys have no idea how much I missed you… but you're kind of hurting me…"

She was immediately released. A moment later, Leon slapped her upside the head. "_You _missed us? Why the hell did you leave us in the first place you psycho b…"

Abel clapped a hand over his friend's mouth. "Stella, how are you doing? Are you all right? Do you nee…"

Stella smiled quietly. "Fine. No. No." She started to pull at the IV and many other cords attached to her and keeping her alive.

"Stella, don't do that." Demetry chided gently, putting his hand over her own.

"Yes, you're not strong enough to heal by yourself yet." Abel added. He cocked his head to the side, as if contemplating her answers. "Wait! What do you mean you're not all right…" he trailed off as Demetry glared at him.

"Stella, do you need us do to anything?" He asked quietly.

Stella turned to her brother. "Um… you can start by getting those out of the room." She pointed.

Abel looked behind him and saw that some careless doctor or another had left an entire tray of needles, sharp, pointy needles in the room and they were directly in her line of view. Stella was wincing slightly at the sight of them.

"I hate needles."

**A/N: Aww, that should have made you feel all warm and fuzzy inside. Maybe. No? Well, then tell me and I'll fi… you know what, that's a lie. I'm not fixing anything. Mwhahahah! Review!**


	17. Chapter 17

**A/N: You all be grateful I don't have the heart to kill Stella!**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing… NOTHING1 DO YOU HEAR ME?!!!!!**

"No."

"You go to hell!"

"Now, now Father Leon. I'm sure if we ask nicely, Demetry will let us in." Abel said consolingly. "Demetry will you please let us in to see Stella?"

"No."

Abel sweat dropped.

Demetry put a finger up in the air. "Further more, I plan to strap her to a bed and put her on a boat to Kenpei, and then lock her in a tower for the next hundred years!" He declared loudly.

"Demetry you had better be nice to my friends or I'll make sure that you can _never_ continue the Titan line!" Stella's weak voice yelled from the other side of the closed door.

Vanessa walked up the hallway, pulling irritably at her red jacket. "Come on, Deme." She said, using a nickname she had picked up from Stella. "You're going to let Stella see her friends!"

Demetry bowed his head miserably. "Little advice friends: DON'T MAKE FRIENDS WITH STRONG, TROUBLESOME OPINONATED WOMEN!"

"I HEARD THAT!" Stella and Vanessa chorused.

Then last the Fathers saw of Demetry was him being dragged down the hall by his collar by a homicidal world leader. Abel laughed lightly at his predicament and entered Stella's small room. Immediately Stella's eyes locked onto his, and she smiled cheerfully.

She was a lot less pale and her eyes brighter than they had been three days ago. Abel had been told that as long as she didn't start jumping around like a maniac, she would be physically ready to be moved in a few days. Which of course meant that she had to fight the system and attempt to move that day.

"Hey! How come he gets to be in here!?"

"Correction: why is he allowed to be in here?" Tres said monotonously, staring off into the white wall. "I am here to assist and monitor in the healing of Miss Stella Iceheart."

Stella smiled. "So what's going on, guys? Can I get out of this bed now?" She had been asking that for three days, but her brother had gone halfway to his promise. Her right hand was handcuffed to the bed.

"Lunch!" Ion marched briskly into the room. "Here you go guys." He set down a tray and pretended to wipe the dirt from his hands. "Can someone tell me how is it that I've gone from respected Earl and one of the heads to the Queen's court to maid to a bunch of priests?"

Stella giggled. "Thanks for that visual." A look crossed her eyes. "Hey Ion, hand me that bottle of ketchup."

Ion narrowed his eyes suspiciously. "Stella, you know you are not allowed to have anything except what the doctor gives you."

"Yeah, I'm going to eat ketchup, Ion." Stella said sarcastically. "Just give it." Ion gave her one last warning glare before he handed it over. Everyone watched as she uncorked the bottle and dribbled some over her hand. "DEMETRY!" A few seconds later, a panting Titan stood in the center of the room, having knocked Leon over to get there.

"What? What's going on? What?"

Stella lifted up her hand and smiled sweetly. "Your stupid handcuff made me bleed."

"Ah! I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry! I'm so sorry! Soooooorrrryyyyy!!!" Demetry continued to repeat as he unlocked her. When she was free he lifted the handcuffs to his nose and sniffed. "Hey this isn't blood! You tricked me."

"Duh." She said, putting a hand on his chest and pushing him back. "Now if you would all please leave. I'm getting dressed and I'm getting out of here." She went over to the wardrobe, retrieved her clothes and set them on the bed.

"No you're not. Stella, get back in the bed." Demetry said sternly.

"Fine have it your way." Stella shrugged and began to pull at the hem of her hospital gown.

"No! Out! Out! Out! You perverted priests!" Demetry roared, pushing them all out of the room.

After he had successfully slammed the door behind him, Abel chose to spoke. "You know, Demetry, we _are_ priests. It would be unethical for us to allow a young girl to undress in front of us."

Of course, it was then that Leon decided to open his mouth. "Yeah, but I'll bet if we weren't priests she's be a fine…"

Demetry was looking at Leon with fire in his eyes. "What… were… you… saying?"

"Suggestion: Father Leon it is suggested for your utmost health that you retreat." Tres said.

"Right. In other words, run away!!!!!!!!" Leon yelled and bolted down the hall.

Abel looked at Demetry. "Why aren't you running after him?"

Demetry shrugged and licked a fang, just like Stella did when she had malicious thoughts running through her head. "Nah. I'll let him run and then use my super Titan speed to kill him."

"Ehehe…" Abel said, sweat dropping.

"Mmm, now." Demetry said, and a moment later, he was gone.

"I will assist Father Leon." Tres said, marching forward.

"Well that was interesting."

Abel whirled around. Stella was leaning against the doorframe, and to him, she looked amazing. Now that white wasn't reflecting off of her already pale features, he could see a bit of red in her cheeks. Her curly hair was brushed and wasn't pulled back, so the red streaks just made her look a little bit healthier. She had on a dress Seth had loaned her, thankfully the woman was a bit small for her age, so Seth's clothes that wouldn't fit her until the year after or so, fit her perfectly.

Even though Stella had vehemently protested wearing a dress in the first place, Astha's clothes were too long and Ion's clothes too wide. No matter how much she hated the dress, Abel had to admit it looked nice on her. It was a blue summer dress, the same dark color as her eyes. Originally, Seth had picked out a pink dress, but that was going too far. It had a V-neck, and was slightly tight along the chest and abdomen area. Her almost nonexistent sleeves and the bottom half flowed nicely, ending in a cloud shape pattern at the bottom. Of course the girly affect was spoiled by her worn combat boots, which stretched halfway up her calf.

Stella smirked. "Now how's about you and me round up the troops and get back to the Vatican." She winked. "I have a feeling the Cardinal's going to have some very un-Cardinal-like words for me."

**A/N: Yay! Happy chapter to get away from all the angst!**

**So that's it, right? Everyone's friends and happy and healthy. Stella's not being shipped off by her brother. The perfect happily ever after, right? Wait, WTF! Whose crashing my happily ever after!? Oh! Bad shit it up back in the Vatican!**


	18. Chapter 18

**A/N: It's getting really tiring to put something new and interesting in this space everyday.**

**Disclaimer: Yeah… uh huh… go on… For you slow peoples I'm being the your psychiatrist because I just saw the bill for them… they are way overpaid to sit there and listen to people's problems.**

"See ya. I'm going to go bug people."

"I'll come with you."

"Stella, sit down."

"Please Father Nightroad?"

"No, Stella. Please sit down now."

"I knew the puppy dog eyes would wear off eventually." Stella grumbled, sighing and sitting next to Abel. "You are seriously worse than my brother."

"I'm right here!" Demetry cried indignantly from his seat directly across from Stella.

Stella looked at him with disinterested eyes. "So?"

"I will retrieve Father Leon." Tres said getting up.

They watched him leave. "Wait! Tres! That's the wrong… aw, I'll get him." Demetry said, rolling his eyes and disappearing out of the compartment.

They had been able to get a rather large train cubicle. Still, Abel wondered how it was that he ended up sitting next to Stella. Whenever they were left alone (like now) it was extremely awkward and silent.

Originally the seating arrangements had been fine. Tres, who was very bulky, sat at the end of the compartment to the right of the door. Vanessa and Demetry, who were both rather bony people, their mass more in their height, sat next to him and had plenty of room. Stella sat across from her brother so that she would have to go through five people to get out of the compartment. Abel sat next to her… because he had gotten into the stall second to last. Or at least that was what he told himself. Leon was left with the last seat.

Soon, everyone had filed out, though. Vanessa left first, stopping in Albion to get off. Demetry said a very private farewell to her and Stella mentioned wedding bells… and was nearly pummeled by her brother, who had forgotten she was sick for the first moment in five days. Now Leon was off to his own devices, Tres was going to wrong way (Abel had an inkling that he needed a coordinate and direction reboot) and Demetry was trying to catch them both. Stella was sitting rather close to him, he realized, considering the big, empty compartment.

"Erm… Father Nightroad…"

"Stella," Abel sighed. "I gave up trying to get young Michael to call me Nightroad ever since he was nine when his father wouldn't. Since then, all of my friends have called me Abel. I wish you would do the same."

A light blush spread across Stella's cheeks, but her voice was normal. "All right. Abel, I never really got a chance to thank you for bringing me back. Demetry wouldn't be able to handle himself without me and… I… wouldn't have…"

"I know." Abel said solemnly. "We really thought we were going to loose you, Stella. Even after I brought you back, it was touch and go. So don't be too hard on us if we don't let you go on missions for a long time to come. Last time a left, I was suspended from missions unofficially for one year. I really can't imagine what is going to happen to you; even though I was gone for thirty years, they never though I was dead, because twenty years after I left, I sent Ion back. And I was never such a mystery as you."

"I never did hear the whole story of your adventure." Stella interrupted.

Abel gave her a sad smile. "And hopefully, you never shall."

She nodded. "Bad memories, huh?"

Abel nodded. "Yes."

Stella nodded again and patted him on the back. "Then don't think about it and I won't ask again until you're ready." Once again they delved into awkward silence.



Stella found her mind wandering. A picture of her sister's decrepit face flashed before her eyes. She shook her head. _Something else!_ Another image flashed in front of her eyes. This one was of her kissing Abel. _Ack! Not that! _She blushed deeply and slid a glance at the priest sitting beside her.

Unfortunately (or fortunately) Abel had been glancing at her at the same moment. They both caught each other and quickly looked away. Stella waited until the heat fell from her face before looking back at him.

Abel was staring off into space, twiddling his thumbs. He was humming softly to himself and looked perfectly serene. _Wish I could do that._ She thought suddenly. _Experience the amount of pain he did and not relieve every second of it the moment I have nothing to think about._ She tried hard to keep her thoughts from turning bitter. _Damn this is going to be a long century. _She thought as more poignant images of Dormaloone, Harrison, her sister's keepers and her sister flashed before her eyes.



"We're back!" Demetry called from behind Tres. He was tugging Leon along by the ear. "You'll never guess where I found this delinquent." He grumbled, sitting Leon in his seat and returning to his own.

"Where?" Stella asked mechanically, only half-listening.

"In the kitchens! Ca you believe it? He was replacing the sugar with salt and vice versa!" (A/N: Tried that, got in trouble. Laughed my ass off.) Demetry exclaimed.

Abel hid his smile behind his hand. "Young man! That is one of the worst crimes you could commit! A crime against food!"

They all started laughing. Out of the corner of his eye, though, Demetry saw that his sister was spacing out, staring at her hands, which were clasped in her lap.

"Stel? Stella? Hey, you okay?" he leaned forward and lightly touched her cheek.

Stella jumped when he touched her and grabbed his wrist in a vice-like grip, twisting it. She nearly broke it before she realized whom it was. During this time, Demetry stayed silent. She looked back up to him with big blue eyes that Demetry had always seen as innocent. Now they looked haunted.

"Oh god, Demetry! I'm so sorry. Why'd you let me do that?" she asked worriedly, dropping his hand like a hot plate.

Demetry chuckled and rubbed his aching wrist. "Well at least I don't have to worry about you and any malevolent priests."

Demetry knew his sister better than anyone, and he knew when she was faking a smile. The smile she put on set off the brother-knows-something's-wrong lights in his head like an escaped convict in a prison yard.

"Oh come on, Demetry. 'Malevolent priests'? Since when has there ever been a priest with bad intentions?"

"You'd be surprised, Stella." Abel said.

Stella nodded and looked back down at her hands. "Um… guys? I'll be right back." She stood and made towards the door. Leon and Tres each thrust out an arm, stopping her.

"It's fine, guys. Let her through. Stella, three minutes and not a second longer." Demetry said. He knew that Stella should be able to have time to collect herself but he also knew that she was prone to long bouts of depression, especially after she'd killed someone. He was afraid of what Lia's murder was doing to her, and since she wouldn't show anyone she was hurting, he was afraid it would be too late before any of them realized what was wrong.

(A/N: I am very tempted to end it here but I figure since you guys have reviewed overall more than my other stories and a lot of you have stuck with it from the beginning, I'll give you a bit of a longer chapter.)



"Stella, would you like to stop at your apartment before we go to see Cardinal?" Abel asked kindly. She had been unusually quiet throughout the entire journey, and after a tearful goodbye with her brother at the docks; she had been completely silent and distant.

She blinked and her eyes refocused out of whatever reverie she was in. "What?"

"Would you like us to go to your apartment before we go to see Cardinal Kate?" Abel asked again patiently.

"Negative. Cardinal Kate has ordered for Stella Iceheart to come directly to her office along with myself, Father Abel Nightroad and Father Michael Leon Jr." Tres said, walking forward.

As the group began to walk with him, Stella smiled at Abel. Unbeknownst to her (and Demetry) Abel knew enough about giving false smiles to know one when he saw one. "It's all right Fath… Abel. I really am not looking forward to going back to my apartment anyway."

"Why's that?" Leon asked from the other side of Abel.

Stella smiled impishly. "Because I left the remainder of your house-warming gift in the fridge." (A/N: Remember, Leon's present was a lump of frosting he and his dad made and called it a cake.)

Leon and Abel paused a moment to remember what Leon's present was.

"Oh ewwww!"

"Stella! That thing must be alive by now!"

Stella laughed and practically skipped ahead of them to draw level with Tres. She started talking to him, and surprisingly enough, she got answers. Not particularly conversational ones, but answers nonetheless.

Soon they were at the entrance to the church.

"Present identification!" A guard called out.

The men quickly pulled out their badges, but Stella shook her head. "I lost mine sometime last month, after we… caught Onigoma."

"It's fine Stella, you're with us." Abel said reassuringly.

"Yeah! So open up those gates and let us in. I'm hungry and Sister Ellen promised us a bowl of soup as soon as we got back." Leon said, grinning roguishly.

The two guards whispered a moment. Finally, one stepped forward. "I apologize, but you will have to wait here." His tone said that he felt no remorse for keeping them.

Abel shifted from foot to foot as the guards stood there, watching them emotionlessly. Something in his gut told him to grab Stella and run, but he stayed where he was, under the piercing gaze of the two gate guards.

A few minutes later, Abel's sensitive nanomachines picked up the sound of light, even pattering of marching feet. He could tell by the way Stella stiffened she could hear them too. He gently moved his hand until it touched her elbow. He kept it there a second, to let her know that he had done that on purpose and to comfort her. Her eyes slid over to his and she nodded slightly. A moment later, even Leon looked up. A dozen armed Inquisition soldiers were coming their way, headed by the Chief of Inquisition himself.

Petros, who had held the position for thirty years, had recently named his successor. Finley, a small man, was one that Abel didn't particularly like. He was stuck up and pompous and walked with an air of self-importance that only his Lord should carry. His straight blonde hair was always pulled back into a ponytail and his pale face came to a point at his nose, which was curled into the air. When he spoke to priests, it was always with bored indifference. Abel inwardly winced at the thought of him talking to Stella like that. She was not a nun, and would not take it cheerfully, he was sure.

Finley's gray eyes bore into each of them, and Stella stepped closer to Abel. He wanted to step in front of her protectively, but Finley's eyes told him that any sudden moves would be reacted to with unnecessary force. Finley cleared his throat importantly.

"I regret to inform you, Miss Iceheart, that you are to be taken into custody to be tried for abandonment of churchrial duties, treason, and acts against god." He called out.

Abel winced. _Acts against god… oh Stella, please don't read into this. God, please don't let her realize what he has just said…_

"Acts against god… like that's new." Stella muttered.

Finley nodded quickly and one of the guards stepped forward nervously with a pair of cuffs. The cuffs were basically metal caskets that would restrain Stella's hand from the wrist down. He was young and visibly shaking. Stella rolled her eyes.

"Come on now, young one. I'm not going to bite you… not yet, anyway." Stella said, curling her tongue around her fang.

Abel silently applauded her as the cuffs were being placed on her hands. Still she could incite fear in anyone she wanted. (A/N: Remember when she was at the police station in the Vatican.) The trembling man practically thrust the chain that was attached to the cuffs to the Chief.

As she was being dragged away, Abel felt helpless and guilty. "Stella…" he said weakly.

Stella turned and smiled at him, but her eyes were welling over. "Don't worry, Abel. I'll be fine. I always am." She looked down and started walking again. If he hadn't had his Crusnick nanomachines, he would have never heard her say, "But that was before I had something to loose."

**A/N: Awww, so sad. What do you guys think? Nice? Not nice? Review people!**


	19. Chapter 19

**A/N: Apparently my last chapter made some of you sad. I'm sorry, but hey, you figure it might get better… or not.**

**Dude, as I was writing this I got a couple of reviews… creepy… it's like you guys know when I'm writing…**

**Disclaimer: Apparently there is a reason for disclaimers. See, the Abridged series of Naruto's creators got banned from Youtube and now they can't make any more episodes… sniff… you people are so strict.**

Stella allowed herself to be lead to the Inquisition's building, just east of the cathedral. She wasn't nervous. No, she had been arrested far too many times to be nervous. She might have been sad or even angry at the indignity, but she would not have recalled it later.

Her fingers fidgeted inside the cuffs. If she twisted her arms for a few minutes, her hands were just small enough to wriggle out, albeit with several cuts and her hands rubbed raw. If she twisted her arms quickly, the cuffs would break. She ran her tongue over her fangs without opening her mouth. She could bite each and every one of the guards around her and escape. Better yet, she could move the water from the vases around her and slit each of their necks silently, at the expense of more energy.

There were problems with these plans, though. She was one Titan of two; an ambassador to her species. To give a bad impression, Demetry would surely pay for it. Not only that, but whoever was pulling the strings around here would like as not use her defiance as an excuse to wage war on her brother. Though he was a good Leader, and everyone knew it, with Kenpei on a constant totter between peace and civil war, he didn't need to have half of his citizens sell him out for a small reward, as Stella knew the greedy citizens would do. Still, these reasons weren't quite enough. Had she been mad enough, she might, just might have attacked and escaped. But knowing that she would leave Abel and the others (especially Abel, though she didn't admit it to herself) behind and disappointed in her _again_ was what held her back the most. She couldn't do that; to them or herself.

So she allowed herself to be lead to the Inquisition's building just east of the cathedral without nervousness. (A/N: Yes, I know I'm repeating myself here.) She was led towards a set of steps. Her heart sped up slightly. She, being a Titan, was able to control her body functions to an extent. She slowed her heartbeat. She took the first step down the stairs. Her breath caught in her throat. She slowed her breathing until it came normally and was pushed roughly from behind by the blonde haired man that seemed to be leading them.

She growled slightly, but moved double pace down three more stairs before stopping again. Her heart was beating so fast she felt the throb in her head and her breath was coming in short bursts. It was all she could do to keep from panting. Her mouth felt dry. She shook her head, clearing for a moment. She stepped again, but it started over. Waves of nausea hit her and the sickly sweet and musty smells of rot and death that she knew were not really there burned her nose. She tried to swallow, but her throat closed. She was starting to panic. _What's happening to me?_

The saliva in her mouth, whatever small amount there was, foamed and she felt weak. She fell to her knees and gasped. She fought her instincts, which were taking over. She wanted to bite into her captors and run, which way, she did not know. Lights and colors where blending together and there was yelling. She was being beaten. A single coherent thought stood out among her frantic urges. _They think I'm trying to escape!_

"Help, please." She croaked out. "I can't breathe." Her eyes rolled and her head hit the edge of a step.



"Father Abel Nightroad."

"Yes?" Abel asked nervously. Something was not right, he could tell, but he didn't know what. It set him on edge.

"Cardinal Kate requests your presence in her office after dinner. She explicitly asked that you only have a limit of two servings." Tres said.

"Thanks, Tres." Abel said semi-cheerfully. He had sunk into a small depression filled with guilt and self-berating. "Are you going to come with me?"

"Negative. Mission: fifty percent complete. Objective two: Find Proffessor Walter Wordsworth and get upgrade for direction and coordinates. In process."

Abel watched him go. _The Cardinal wants to see me again? I wonder if she found out why Cardinal Francesco has decided now, of all times, to arrest Stella. Maybe she even got Stella out. _Abel smiled lightly at the thought.

As he ate dinner (only two servings, as the Cardinal asked) he thought about Cardinal Fransesco and why he motives he had for detaining Stella.

The Cardinal had refused to give up his position, despite all of conflict, especially with his sister. He was just as anti-Methuselah as ever, but now it seemed that it stretched to Crusnick and Titan as well. Of course, whenever Abel was in the same room as his Eminence they both showed proper respect, but he was rumored to have suggest that both Abel and his sister were plotting some great downfall of the human race.

Normally, Abel would have dismissed under the excuse of the senility of the eighty-year-old man's mind. But now that he was mad (he didn't even chastise himself about being mad) he didn't give him the benefit of the doubt and was ready to jump down his throat on the first politically incorrect thing the man said.

Abel went up to the Cardianl's office to find not only Kate but Caterina as well. The old woman was sitting behind the desk with Kate standing beside her, looking as sharp as ever. Her smile towards Abel was forced.

"Good evening, Abel."

Abel nodded his head slightly in substitute for a bow. "Car… Sister Caterina." Abel had still not remembered to stop calling her Cardinal.

"So, let's get this over with. Stella's been arrested. I've spoken with my brother and he very irritatingly reminded me since I'm no longer the Cardinal, I have no right to question his actions. He did, however, tell me that it was not him that ordered the arrest on Stella."

"What?" Abel asked sharply. The only one beside the two Cardinals that had the power to arrest someone of the Ax and who was an international ambassador was…

"Pope Alessandro has decided to place Stella Iceheart under arrest for treason, abandonment of churchirial duties and crimes against god's will."

**A/N: Ohhh…. Read the next chapter to see what I've done to the Pope. Review!**


	20. Chapter 20

**A/N: Well peeps, we're at chapter twenty, and for those of you who have been reading this story all the way through, this is chapter sixty one.**

**Disclaimer: Dude, just go to the last nineteen chapters.**

Abel walked quietly down the halls of the Inquisition's ground floors. He was being allowed to see Stella under the pretense that he was her confessor. He listened to the burly representative that was standing next to him.

The man had a slightly larger girth than most of the Inquisition soldier, but that was expected when one was a prison guard. Most of the poor souls dragged into the Inquisition were in no condition to fight by the time they got there and after that… well, after that, they were not in much of a condition to do anything.

The man spoke with a low voice in short sentences. If Abel hadn't been a pacifist priest, he would have found it rather annoying. "The girl collapsed as we were bringing her down the steps. We all thought that she was trying to escape, got a right enough amount of bruises till we noticed that she was unconscious. She woke up a couple hours later, and started to talk with me through the bars when I asked her questions. Personally, I think she's a nice enough gal, ceptin' for that crimes against god thing." Abel inwardly cringed, but the guard continued, unaware of the uncomfortable atmosphere he was creating. "After that, they put her in the hospital cell, but she woke up scared and covering her eyes. We had to knock her out for a few minutes and blind her with some scrap of cloth. She had the good sense to leave it on, though, when she woke up. Sumthin' odd about her, if you ask me. She's smarter than a lot of girls in Rome, believe me, I've looked." The guard gave a hearty chuckle, and then seemed to remember he was supposed to be a warrior of god. He coughed lightly. "Er… anyway, she's nice enough, but mabbe bein' in that cell is better for 'er than being out in the world." The man babbled on and on about something or another. Abel really didn't pay attention after the man seemed done speaking of Stella.

He was led to the same room he had spoken to Leon Sr. all those years ago about reducing his sentence. He knew that not far away, Stella was in a hospital cell, which was exactly like a regular cell, except the walls were not of stone, but of sterilized panels. Abel had an idea of why Stella had been upset when she had regained consciousness, but would say nothing to anyone until he had her permission.

"Well, here you are, Father." The guard said, bowing slightly at the waist.

The heavy (and unnecessary, in Abel's opinion) steel door was pulled back and Abel took a seat at one side of the glass. He picked up and fingered the phone lightly as Stella was brought out from her cell.

He was completely aghast at her condition. Not two weeks after an extremely traumatic (both physical and mental) experience, Stella looked as if horses had pummeled her. Her once beautiful, though hated dress, hung off of her more than ever, and was lightly pattered near her shoulder, where the wound from the disembodied hand had been, as well as her stomach with blood. There were dark bruises along her arms and what he could see of her face. The blindfold that the guards had given her was nothing more than a ripped off piece from one of their uniforms. The cuffs were still of, and looked more than uncomfortable. Abel's nose wrinkled in discontent.

"Stella, are you all right?" Abel mentally smacked himself. Of course she was not all right!

Stella's face twisted into a grim smile. "Of course, I'm enjoying my vacation wonderfully, thanks for asking." Leon Jr. would have been jealous of her sarcasm.

Abel dropped his voice, though the only one around to hear him was the overly friendly guard that was standing the required fifteen feet away from him. "Listen, Stella. We don't know what's going on, any of us. Apparently you have been arrested by the Pope, so you must listen to me when I say you must stay passive in this fight."

Stella remained quiet, but she was frowning. "What do you mean passive? I don not believe this situation calls for either a passive or aggressive stance. It calls for the truth, Abel. It is the human's decision whether or not they want to believe it. Of course, knowing humans, they won't and I will be stuck in here for years... or until I get bored. And what is the Pope again?"

"The Pope is the most powerful man in the Vatican. He has one of the strongest and certainly the most devoted army in the world. With a single word, he can launch all four major nations into a massive world war." Abel said, desperately pleading with his voice for Stella to understand the severity of her position.

Stella laughed lightly. "Abel, I get it. The 'all powerful' Pope has put me in jail and will start a war with my brother if I don't roll over like a good dog." She laughed again, but this one landed on a slightly hysterical note.

"Please, Stella. I know it's going to be hard, but the best thing for you to do short of breaking out of here…"

"That's an option?" Stella said, pretending to be surprised.

Abel gave her a weary look and though she couldn't see it, he was sure she could feel it by the way she fidgeted. "Stella, please." He said quietly and urgently. "When the hearing time comes, everyone will expect you to plead innocent. The Cardinal, Sister Caterina and I have talked about it. We think you should plead guilty. There is sure to be a shorter way for you to repent than thirty years in jail. For your own sake as well as your brother's, do it."

Stella's frown was back, and somehow the look on her face told Abel that she had already thought about it. "Abel…" She said weakly.

"Stella, damn it!" Abel said angrily, temporarily forgetting that he was a priest, forgetting that what he was doing was so unlike him. He stood but kept his grip tight on the plastic phone. "Don't you realize that everyone who loves you might loose you forever because of this!" He wanted to take back those words as soon as they left his mouth. He gently sat back in the chair, watching Stella intently.

He nearly frowned. There was no emotion on her face, but she had removed her blindfold. Her blue bloodshot eyes swirled as they stared up at him quietly, searching his face. He tried to relax it so she would not see any hostility. Her eyes met his, pupils matching up perfectly. "Abel." She said quietly, but firmly. Abel suddenly felt like a very guilty child. "I will do what is right." Stella said with such conviction that Abel would not have opposed her word, if he had the chance.

She quickly tied the blindfold around her eyes and stood. Before she was grabbed roughly by the elbow and escorted quickly from the room, she turned her head sideways, addressing Abel again. "Abel, please send in Father Leon for my next confessional." She walked from the room, leaving Abel alone with a plastic phone in his limp grasp.

The situation reminded him of when a mother catches her son doing something very, very bad. She just purses her lips and instead of yelling, leaves the room very quietly, then, like a cat, she pounces later. At least, it left him with the same ominous feeling. He brushed aside his doubts, hoping that he was wrong; hoping that Stella's idea of right was staying safe with her friends.

But of course, he knew, just knew that something was up.

And that something very bad was going to happen

**A/N: Yes, I know I'm evil. Review!**


	21. Chapter 21

**A/N: My computer is seriously messed up.**

**Disclaimer: Yeah… no. I'm not gonna say it cause you got to learn by yourself to listen the first time… if you don't you might get zapped by a shocky door several times, and then where will you be?**

"Is everything arranged?"

"Yes. I made the call an hour ago. One of my old friends helped me. Don't worry, no one can trace the call. He's not happy, but he knows it is necessary."

"Thank god for your previous illegal life."

Stella's head turned towards the door she could not see. She could hear footsteps even though the glass and steel doors were between her and whoever was coming. There was a screech of metal and Leon Sr. nearly dropped the phone.

"Abel." Leon said curtly.

"Leon." Abel said quietly.

_Great. I'm causing tensions with my friends. Oh well, nothing to do now but to wait and hope that everything will turn out for the best. _"Father Nightroad, what are you doing…" Stella began cheerfully. When she saw Abel's blank look, she smacked herself mentally. She brought the phone to her lips. "Abel, good morning. For you, anyways."

Abel gave her a tired look, and for once, Stella saw the weight of his age on his shoulders. "It's never a good day with one of my best friends in jail."

"Well then you should have been downright miserable those fifteen years I was in jail!" Leon said, grinning.

Abel smiled slightly, but Stella knew he did not mean it. "Yes, I was Leon. Now, why are you here?"

Leon's grin didn't slip from his face. "I'm Stella's confessor, no? I figured that a girl like her might have a lot of stuff to confess to…" he wiggled his eyebrows suggestively, "but no dice. She's as clean as a whistle."

Stella made a slight blush go to her face. (A/N: remember, Titans and androids and a little bit of Crusnicks have control over their bodily functions to an extent.) "Leon! You're as bad as your son!" She cried out indignantly.

"Where'd you think he learned his charming manner?" She could tell Leon Sr. was actually enjoying himself.

"Well, Leon, we have to go, visiting hours are over, though I had rather wanted to see Stella before her trial tomorrow." Abel was genuinely disappointed.

Stella could not stand to see her friend upset. She said into the phone. "Good night, Fathers. Abel, try not to eat the poor nuns out of house and home. And don't you dare use the I'm-a-growing-man excuse!"

"How cruel." Abel said, bowing his head.



Abel lay awake that night, waiting for the next day to come. He was sure Stella was planning something, and she did not seem to realize that if the Inquisition caught her plotting both she and Leon would receive a punishment worse than any that she was getting right now. He sighed, frustrated, and closed his eyes, but did not fall into the warmth of sleep.

The next day, he walked to the Inquisition building quickly. He was late, and on his best friend's trial day for Christ's sake! He ran to the courtroom, but found it to be empty.

"Excuse me, my good sir?" Abel hailed a guard walking down the hallway. "Would you happen to know where the Stella Iceheart case is being held?"

The man grunted. "Yep. In the maroon room."

"And where would that be?" Abel asked pleasantly.

"Other side of the building."

"Of course." Abel sweat dropped.

He arrived just before the door closed and took a seat. He now knew why everything had been moved to the much larger maroon room. Everyone who ever met Stella from the time he knew her was there, and some who hadn't. There was the retired Cardinal, Caterina, Leon Sr., Leon Jr., and the holograms of Cardinal Kate, Demetry, Seth, Virgil, and Vanessa, all looking worriedly around themselves, trying to talk quietly, but unable to because of the solemnity of the occasion. Vanessa alone kept her voice, seated between her brother and Demetry (who looked almost as bad as when Stella was missing), whispering encouraging words to the obviously distraught man.

The room was longer than it was wide. The carpet was a rich wine red, giving a warm, though imperious look to the room coupled with the dark wood ceiling and walls. A desk with a marble tabletop was set in the center of the front of the room, eight feet away from the wall. There was small door behind the table, built into the wall. Sitting around the perimeter of the room, there were uncomfortable black chairs with the Inquisition's emblem on it. The left side of the room was devoted to friends of Stella, while the right was for assorted priests and advisors to the Pope.

Abel frowned when he saw that at the first seat on the right, the seat normally reserved for the Pope's most trusted confidant, a man dressed completely in black sat. Though Abel could not make out the man's features, he had a slightly ominous and familiar feeling.

A few minutes after the door closed, everyone straightened as the small door behind the table opened and out stepped the Pope.

Pope Alessandro had grown up handsomely; His honey curls were cut so that they just brushed the tips of his ears. His nose was small, and a small, ever-present scratch from an assassination attempt years ago had given him a more of an adult look. He was not muscular in any sense of the word, nor did her look it. His eyes were the only contrast to the meek looking exterior. They were bright and sharp, bespeaking a brilliant mind behind hands that seemed to fiddle with themselves on a constant basis.

Abel snuck a look to his friends. The Caterina and Kate both looked slightly displeased, and Caterina's eyes looked sharply at her young brother. Virgil's face was completely emotionless, but Abel could tell that he was not happy with the situation. Vanessa pouted slightly, and her hand was grasping her pant leg, which more likely than not would be wrinkled beyond repair by her claws that day. Demetry's face was completely clear of the distressed look that had been there less than a minute ago, Abel suspected that he had been controlling his body functions so that he would look normal and not show any weakness against his new potential enemies.

There was a loud sound of a door being opened, which echoed in the long hall. Stella's light footsteps could be heard, along with the jangle of heavy officer's uniforms. The Chief himself was leading Stella slowly by the arm, as if they were at a ballroom dance. Stella didn't make eye contact with anyone, not looking for the comforting glances they all tried to give her. No, she was far too busy staring straight into the Pope's eyes, glaring. The middle-aged man seemed slightly taken aback, and when her gaze did not wave, he seemed intimidated. Abel was impressed. Under the weight of so much pain and hardship, Stella still tormented her captor with rebellious eyes with a silent resilience he had never known. It reminded Abel of when they had first met.

The Inquisition guards flanking her pulled Stella down as they bowed to the Pope. They were signaled to rise, and they backed off. Stella stood and faced Alessandro. His hands fidgeted one last time under the table before he laid them flat on the polished marble surface.

"Stella Icheart you have been placed under arrest by his Holiness the Pope, Alessandro the third, three hundredth and ninety-ninth Pope of the Vatican in Rome for abandonment of churchirial duties, treason against Rome, and crimes against the will of God. How do you plead?"

Abel moved around in his seat nervously. He really didn't have anything to be nervous about. It was just a simple hearing, but not really a hearing at all. All Stella had to do was plead guilty, that was it, and she would be allowed to repent. He had nothing to be worried about. God, he was nervous.

Stella opened her mouth. Abel caught her eye. He tried to give her a stern and a pleading look all at the same time. Without moving her head, Stella allowed her eyes to apologize for her. It was then that Abel knew exactly what she was going to say a half second before she said it.

"Not guilty."

**A/N: I was seriously debating if I should stop here or go on. Obviously, I decided to stop because I'm tired and it is almost midnight, though you guys are probably going to get the message sometime in the morning because my computer is so messed up. Review!**


	22. Chapter 22

**A/N: I just finished the other chapter yesterday… usually I'm stuck on writers block for a least a day and a half between chapters… I must like where this story is going. Or I'm so totally bored out of my mind that I have nothing better to do…**

**Disclaimer: Well, since I have no other way to preoccupy my time, I'll humor a bunch of idiots who are standing outside my house, chanting that they want to know who Trinity Blood belongs to. I do not own Trinity Blood.**

Pope Alessandro smiled with anticipation. Out of the corner of Abel's eye, he noticed that the new non-priest at the Pope's right hand was smiling as well. "Miss Iceheart, I'm afraid I have to inform you; in your brother's current unmarried state, and having no heirs in a monarchy, any relation to him are possible successors for the thrown. That being said, as you are the only current heir, you are an ambassador. Now, because of your civil disobedience and refusal to repent, you are aware that your stubbornness could lead to a war between Kenpei and the Vatican, correct?" Everyone in the room was grossly aware that the Pope thought he had her there. Abel snuck a look over at Caterina. She seemed aghast of her little brother's sudden personality shift.

Stella let him finish with an emotionless expression. She replied smoothly and without raising her voice. "Pope Alessandro, to make the claim that you have just made, there are several things that you are evidently not aware of that might change your views on whether or not my 'civil disobedience', as you put it, will result in a world war."

The Pope seemed surprised and slightly amused at her response. "Then please enlighten me."

Stella smiled. "Gladly. The first thing you might want to know is that both the Empire and Albion will not stay neutral in this world." She pinned him with a look and her voice grew momentarily hard. "You might want to consider which side they will choose." Her tone told the room what would happen.

Abel glanced at Virgil and Seth. Neither seemed surprised that Stella had said this; in fact, they looked as if they had been expecting it. They kept their eyes trained on Stella while the priests across the room glared at them, but when the Pope looked at them they each met his gaze.

The Pope seemed at a loss as to what to do. His eyes turned back into their normal, afraid and tentative look before they changed back to emotionless. "And care to tell me any other unprecedented information, Miss Iceheart?"

"Why not?" Stella gave a reckless smile. "I have two more facts to state that might just convince that war is not an option." The Pope inclined his head, to tell her to continue. "The first is to correct you on an earlier statement made. I am no longer the single ambassador of Kenpei. As of eleven thirty-four two nights ago, my brother, Demetry, Leader of Kenpei, was engaged to Vanessa Walsh, ambassador and leader of the Movement in Albion."

There was moment of shocked silence as everyone processed her words. Slowly, all eyes in the hall turned towards Demetry and Vanessa. Demetry, looked slightly down, seemingly reluctant. Vanessa rolled her eyes and quickly slipped off her white glove. On her hand, there was a beautiful diamond ring. Several gasps could be heard around the room and attention quickly turned back to the Pope.

His fingers were steepled and his expression was far-gone from the triumphant smirk that had been there before. He cleared his throat after a moment of silence. "We will have an hour break for midday meal. Miss Iceheart, you have my permission to dine with your friends and family for what may be the last time for a good long while. Prepare yourself, Miss Iceheart, for I believe that there is nothing short of God's will can change my current state of mind at this point and that final ambassador or not, you are an ambassador nonetheless and war is imminent unless you hand me an extraordinary piece of evidence is presented to me after lunch. That is all." The Pope rose and everyone stood as he exited the room through the same door he had entered from.

Abel was shaking, though he hadn't realized it until then.

A guard swiftly came across the room and undid Stella's handcuffs (Abel silently pleaded with Stella not to run) and placed a standard police pair around her wrists. She was led out of the room quickly, towards a small cafeteria within the building.

They all filed out of the room, Abel looked back at Vanessa and Demetry, who were talking with each shyly. He smiled. _Young love. Demetry might be close to my age, but I'm far the wiser, contrary to what everyone may think._ Abel left the 'young lovers' (Though in reality, they're each over a century old) to their talk while falling the raucous sounds coming from the cafeteria.

Stella was surrounded by her friends, trapped in hugs as well as berating statements, mostly coming from the older groups. Huge sat on the edge of the group, seemingly not paying attention while taking in everything. Abel knew he would be able to talk to Stella in a few moments, when the Cardinal and Sister Caterina got done yelling at her. He sat across from Huge and spoke in hushed tones.

"I'm surprised to see you here, my friend."

Hugue nodded. "It is very interesting, and not all seems to be right, Father Nightroad."

Abel nodded. "I noticed him too." He said, afraid to say it out loud in case there were any sharp ears about. He frowned as he saw Leon Sr. slip Stella something, which she stowed quickly in her boot, making it look as if she had an itch.

"That is not all. Something is different about our fair leader, and more than likely it has to do with his new council."

"I wonder where Brother Alexos is now." Abel mused, thinking of the old man that he had rather liked, and used to be the Pope's right hand advisor.

"That is something we will have to wait and watch for." Hugue said, quietly folding his arms on the table.

Abel nodded his head. He looked at Stella, who was for the most part, ignoring Caterina and Kate, earning laughs from both Leons. "By any chance, my friend, do you know what Stella is up to?"

"…. No. I wasn't under the impression she was up to anything." Huge said, watching Abel carefully.

Abel nodded absently, while studying his friends' faces. "Yes… I'm sure Leon is in on it as well. I just hope they both realize what they are doing."

"Don't worry, we do." A voice whispered in his ear. Abel jumped up quite literally from his seat. Stella flashed a fang at him before sitting across from Leon Sr. and joining in his complaints about prison food.

They finished lunch as if they were any other day. They laughed and joked, and Abel had to call someone cruel at least twice. As they were leaving, however, Abel tried to be the last one in the room, so he could talk with Stella privately.

"Go on, Father Abel. I've go tot fix my dress." Stella lied smoothly enough to fool the rest of the stragglers, but not enough to fool Abel. He knew this girl. And he knew she was staying behind to cry. He could already hear the small tears (Not tears, tears like rips) in her voice.

He left the room. A few minutes later, they were all seated in the same positions as before. The Pope smiled delicately at Stella.

"Well, Miss Iceheart. Here in front of a room of priests and sisters, and under God's almighty eye, present your last piece of evidence.

Stella bent down, and took something from her boot. She brought it up easily in her long fingers, as the old handcuffs had not been replaced. She handed the paper to a guard and said the words very clearly, her tear ducts filling but not spilling.

"I, Stella Icheart, have been disowned by my brother, Demetry Cheheart, Leader of Kenpei."

**A/N: I love throwing twists at you guys. So what do you think of the Vanessa thing? It might go somewhere… ignore my evil plott… I mean happy bunnies! Review! **


	23. Chapter 23

**A/N: Listen, the only reason that I did not update sooner was because my writing cycle got screwed up. I accidentally went straight from my Naruto two shot to my Sesshomaru story, working on that because I thought that it was that's turn. Then, realizing I made a mistake, I started the cycle all over again instead of doing to smart thing and just writing my Sesshomaru story when it was my Naruto's story's turn… but then I would have had to skip my Yuyu Hakusho story's turn. And because of all this confusion, I stared writing chapter twenty five, thinking this chapter was already done, and then later, chapter twenty six, thinking that one was done. And I just found out that this is chapter twenty three, not twenty four, so three of my chapters are currently mislabeled.**

**Yes, I am aware that half of you did not understand a word of that.**

**Disclaimer: I wrote up this really long, intricate disclaimer that would explain to you exactly how I do not own Trinity Blood, but then I read the author's note again and realized I was just wasting my time, because you probably would not understand the disclaimer if you could not understand that. Then I got really depressed because my entire work was ruined. Now, I'm depressed because half of you skipped the stupid disclaimer, and the only reason that the rest of you are reading the disclaimer is because it is longer than some of my paragraphs (yes, I'll make up for it later). Now that I am out of my spiraling depression, I am ready for another go down that twisty whirlpool of disappointment. So, let's sound it out together: I-d-o-n-o-t-o-w-n-T-r-i-n-i-t-y-B-l-o-o-d.**

Stella was lead from the room. She shared one meaningful look with Abel before she was lost from his sight. Unfortunately, Abel did not know what she was trying to tell him, though he desperately grasped at the meaning.

When the heavy doors were closed, he turned to look around at his friends. Most had gone while Abel had been trying to understand Stella. He met Leon's stare and gave him a hard look, though the man ignored him for his son, who was asking many questions. Abel looked to Demetry, but found that his hologram was gone, and Vanessa was standing quietly in a corner, the only indicators that she was upset were the small wrinkles around her mouth.

Abel sighed heavily. Vanessa, rounding on her second century, was still quite young, far too young to have lines etched around her face. She needed more happiness and what Stella had done to her was unfair, to say the least. Again, Abel sighed. A few months ago, he had noticed that Stella had an uncanny ability to get people to do what she wanted, but he never expected her to abuse her abilities so. He moved to the unhappy Methuselah.

Vanessa was fiddling slightly with the ring on her finger, which was underneath her white gloves. She nodded to Abel respectfully as he approached her. "Father Nightroad."

Abel sat beside her. "Vanessa, I am so sorry Stella had dragged you into this, you do not deserve to have this pressure to pretend to be engaged…"

Vanessa chuckled. "You misunderstand, Father Nightroad. When the old Leon called Virgil, the other night, I was in the same room. It was I who suggested it and Demetry who accepted it. Stella only heard about it a few hours ago."

Abel's eyes widened. "But… she seemed like she knew exactly what she was doing…"

Vanessa nodded. "Stella has an eerie ability to grasp things quickly and figure out how to bend facts to her will. If this was Albion and not the Vatican, she would have made a fine lawyer."

Abel nodded and leaned back in his chair, to look at the ceiling. "Yes. Perhaps it would be better if we allowed lawyers here in the Vatican, besides the Inquisition just deciding whether or not someone is right or wrong. Then again, there are often things that get in the way of law when you have lawyers. It seems that no way can we win, for corruption is on all sides."

"That is the way it always is. None look out for anyone but themselves. Well, that's not true." Vanessa bent a green curl around her finger. "My brother hardly ever does anything for his own personal benefit, only Albions. Then there's Stella… she might do things for herself, but she is not as lowly as some. Demetry can't think of himself between Kenpei and his sister. And you, Father Nightroad… well, besides your stomach, you think of nothing besides yourself."

Abel did not bother with a 'how cruel', he just nodded and stared at the spot Demetry's hologram had been. "Demetry is taking this very hard."

"Of course." Vanessa said, looking too at the spot. "She was his only ally, only friend for decades. She risked everything for him, and he in turn for her. He has had her come back from the dead, only to see her disappear again, but this time, it was his signing his own name that did the deed. Or so it feels to him."

"Is there any way to undo Demetry's contract?" Abel asked, hoping there was, for he knew that when this was all over, whenever that was, this, not being able to call each other so, would eventually kill both siblings.

Vanessa nodded. "Of course. All we need to undo it, is a burning of the paper sighed, and a new document signed by Demetry, his closest family member that is not disowned… which I guess will have to be me, and then one witness, hopefully a holy one. Probably Lady Caterina, Sister Kate or you, Nightroad." Vanessa stood. "I'm going, I've got to see if I can get through to my 'fiancée'. Call us when Stella's next trial will be." Vanessa's hologram flickered, and went out.

Abel sighed before setting off to find Leon, whom he had some very stern words for.



"Leon!"

The aging man turned just as he was being set upon by Abel and Kate's hologram. He had not made it very far. Leon Jr. had left to bother Walter so Leon Sr. only had his cane to rely on. Abel's long (and not at all clumsy at the moment) legs and Kate's quickly moving hologram were more than a match for the veteran.

"Yeah?" He asked, his voice indicating he knew exactly what they were going to say and had no interest in hearing it.

"What is Stella doing!?" Kate exploded, with a very un-Cardinal like look on her face.

Leon sighed. "Look, Stella is a smart girl, smarter than my son can ever hope to be. She's knows how to protect her friends and family."

"And what about herself?" Abel asked frantically. "Now that she has plead not guilty, what is she going to do? Who is going to represent her? Does she even know what she is getting herself into? The Pope could up and decide to execute her for deriding Rome and its government!"

Leon studied Abel for a long time. The man's old eyes studied his very young ones for a while. "Abel…" he said slowly, "I will tell you something. Stella is very much like you, and you must realize what she is doing is the exact same thing you would do in her position. You would cover everyone else's asses before your own, even if they did not deserve it. She has, by getting herself disowned severed any ties she has with her brother. Tonight, a certain piece of paper going by unknown hands will set her up with a totally random father for her confessor, slicing her ties with you, me, Tres, Caterina, Kate, and my son."

"What!" Abel yelled. "She can't do this by herself. She needs help! What does she expect to accomplish by herself?"

"Abel, you want to know what she told me when I asked her the same question?" Leon's eyes had the slightly harsh look back in them from his younger days. "She said, in these exact words, 'I am prepared to stand alone'. That's all. She did not tell me any plan, and I'm not sure if she has one."

"But… but…" Abel faltered.

"That's it, Abel. If you want to find anything else out, you have to go to her."

"Which is almost impossible now, because of the random paper going through unknown hands." Kate finished everyone's thoughts.

"Yes."



Abel tossed on his bed, thinking, as he did more and more lately, instead of sleeping. _'If you want to find anything else out, you have to go to her.' _Leon's words echoed hauntingly in his head.

_'Thank you, Abel' _This time it was Stella's words that echoed in his head, along with he reminder of the night in the Empire, when she had visited him, and, he remembered with a jolt, the kiss he had not thought of in days.

A determined light crept into his eyes, as well as the thought that once again, confession would be hell this week. He quickly got dressed. He tied his hair back, put his glasses on his nose, and turned towards the door.

_If I want to find anything else out, I have to go to her._

**A/N: Oohhh…. So now everyone is up to something. Mwhahaha. Review!**


	24. Chapter 24

**A/N: Hmmm… Yes, I realize I am dull as ditchwater, so just go read the ever-exciting chapter already!**

**Disclaimer: No one, not one of you seriously thinks that I own Trinity Blood. You are just doing this to give me a stabbing reminder. Well, here you go, meet my friend stabby: **_**NONE OF THESE CHARACTERS EVER WILL BE YOURS! MWHAHAHAHA!**_

Okay, now that my little episode is over (and I am done stabbing every hope and dream you've ever had to pieces), on with the chapter…

Stella sat on the cold cell floor. She had been moved from the clean hospital cell to this one, a few floors up. The room was little more than four steel walls with a ceiling and floor. The walls were perfectly smooth, not even so much as a nail poke came out of walls. The door did not have a doorknob, as the only opening would be coming from the outside. The deficiency that Stella could detect was a foul-smelling hole, which she was supposed to jump down and relive herself in. At least she did not have to worry about that yet. Stella refused to eat the food or drink the water given to her in case it was drugged or something of the like. So, nothing coming in meant nothing going out.

She was on the top floor and, consequently, the coldest. She was five floors into the air and the night was damp, with the oncoming winter. The year was almost into its twelfth month. The light summer dress Seth had loaned her was of no help as she watched her skin turn into what resembled most strikingly as raw chicken. Stella, for the sake of her pride, would not shiver, though she knew that there were no cameras in the room and there was no way the guards would see her. So she nearly froze as she thought about whatever she could. Namely, what happened back in the Empire.

She remembered stopping that man, who she later met while she was being cared for. His name was Mau.



As the exodus left, she stopped the last person, a young man whose color had not totally left his face yet. "When the last of the people are out of the main door, yell down to me. You all will have about ten minutes after that to get as far away from here as possible."

He nodded his head once, to substitute for a bow. "My lady and savior, who are you? What are you? From which country do you come?"

Stella smiled sadly. "I used to be Stella Icheart, the Titan, born and bred in the country Kenpachi and currently living in Rome. Now, though, I am not so sure."

The man nodded wisely. "We all were dragged into this castle different people. When you find out who you are, tell me." He left, jogging up the hall with as much strength as an emancipated man in his prime could.



Stella chuckled a little in the back of her throat and allowed a single tear to slide past her closed eyes. _Mau, I'm sorry I could not tell you who I am when you came to see me._



Ion quietly crept into Stella's room, on the third day since she had awoken. "Stella?"

"You don't have to whisper, Ion." Stella had said rather loudly in the quiet room, not event the chorus of the hospital machines accompanied her, as she had demanded they be taken out of the room.

Ion seemed to straighten. "Yes well," he cleared his throat, "I was thinking, since

Demetry is taking an hour off of being guard dog to see the sights with Vanessa…"

"Aha! I knew he liked her!" Stella cried out, elatedly.

"Don't jump to conclusions, Vanessa practically pushed him out the door." Ion reminded her, amusement twinkling behind his red eyes. "Anyway, there has been a man waiting to see you for some time now, and he comes by every day and waits for the okay to come up. To be frank, I'm sick of it…"

"Just bring him in and stop complaining, Ion."

Stella sat herself up on the bed in an attempt to look not as weak as everyone thought she was (and actually was). A moment later, a young man walked into the room. He had on a crisp white shirt and black suspenders. The man wrung his hands nervously as he entered the room, and looked around with wide brown eyes. Stella recognized him instantly as the man she had stopped back at the castle.

"Miss… Miss Stella?" The man stuttered.

Stella nodded. "That is I." She said quietly, hoping not to startle him.

Not for the first time that week, someone launched himself or herself at her. "OH thank you Miss Stella! I can not thank you enough for what you did for us…"

"Okay, that's great, now STOP TOUCHING ME!" Stella yelled, annoyed. Every time someone saw her, they hugged her. She was about to start wearing pointed daggers under her clothes.

The man drew back, but a smile brought a light tom his dull face, which had not recovered its normal pallor. Stella had to remind herself that Terrans did not heal as quickly as Titans, no matter the injury. "Miss Stella, thank you again."

Stella smiled and inclined her head. "Of course. I wish I had gotten there sooner."

They sat in awkward silence for a few minutes. "So…. Miss Stella. Have you figured out who you are yet?"

"Have you?" Stella asked, her bright blue eyes staring into his deep brown ones.

"Aye that I have." The man said nodding. "I am Mau Stepson. I was a police officer in the Vatican before I was taken. I plan to go back there and get my job back. My wife and daughter…" He broke off, his eyes pooling with tears.

"Sometimes," Stella began, "it is better to let rest those who are gone and remember them when we can handle it."

Mau gave a half laugh. "You know, people have been telling me that it would be dishonorable to forget my wife and daughter completely, but it had been torture to remember. I think that if I wait… it will not be so hard. You are wise beyond your years, Miss Stella."

"I assure you, I have more years on my shoulders than you do on your head." Stella responded smiling companionably.

Mau stared at her a moment. "Yes… I'm sure. No being should be through the pain that is in your eyes, but God's will be done." Mau crossed himself quickly and continued. "But I ask again, if I may. Do you know who you are yet?"

"I'd prefer if you didn't, but if you must." Stella said in a tired sigh. She closed her eyes and considered what to tell him. She knew a lie would not do; she did not have the energy to concentrate to make it look convincing anyway. Nor would the truth be any good. It would alarm him, which would only succeed in a rumor, which as most likely a truth, to reach her brother as well as Abel. They would never allow her a moment's rest if they found out how tortured her mind was and just how far she had lapsed into her depression. In the end, she decided on a truth, but kept her tone light, though she could not keep the tiredness away. "I suppose that I do not know who I am, Mau. I know that my name is Stella Iceheart. I am a Titan. Not much else is that clear to me." Stella's ears pricked up and something tingled at the back of her head. "Now, Mau, I believe my brother is back, and will go back to playing guard dog. Unless you wish to sneak out through the window," she indicated the extremely small window high above her bed, "I suggest you run."

"Right. Good day, Miss Iceheart. I hope one day you can tell me who you are." Without another word, Mau was gone.

Stella was silent for a moment. Her brother peeked his head in, glared at the door, muttered about the 'shotty craftsman work', and closed the door.

"As do I, Mau. As do I."

ooooooooo

Stella sighed sadly. _Well, now is the time to figure it out. _She thought, letting another tear run down her face, uninvited.

**A/N: I wanted to keep going, but I couldn't. Until next time, folks!**


	25. Chapter 25

**A/N: Okay, I recently got a question… more like a comment on this. I know I said Seth looked old a few chapters ago… well, think about it. You relatives always think you look so much older than the last time they saw you, and Abel being the scatterbrained dude he is, I think that after thirty years he would be like… wow. Plus if you think about it thirty years might be…. Meh… a year in the Methuselah (vampire) maturing line when they are teenagers (yes I'm getting this off a website… actually I think it might be more like fifty years to a year but deal with it) because they mature faster then, so I thought that Seth might look one year older. Which, as we all know, when you are going through puberty, that actually ends up to be longer than you think on your body. (To my reviewer who asked: Sorry I couldn't message this to you, but thanks for the question… comment… thing…)**

**Ahem… now that we got that out of the way on with the chapter…**

**Disclaimer: Or not. Damn, I thought you would be distracted with the incredibly long A/N. Oh well. I do not own Trinity Blood…. Though I wish I did. **

**Abel: If wishes were fishes there'd be no room in the pond for water.**

**Me: ALL OF YOU STOP HOGGING UP ALL THE WISHING WATER!**

_Hm… _

_I like Danishes. _

_I don't like to fight. _

_I like to wor… be productive. _

_I like to swim._

_I like sitting by a fire._

_I don't like to go to church._

Stella started with the easy things first. She needed her identity, and to get to know herself better, she thought about things she liked and disliked that were easy to name. Everything that ran through her head was instantly committed to memory. All the while, a tear or two would fall from her eyes, though she tried her hardest to keep them at bay. Sooner rather than later, it seemed, as the moon floated to the center of the sky, her thoughts became harder.

_I love my brother Demetry._

_I think he loves Vanessa._

_I think she loves him back._

_I like Tres._

_I think that Leon is a lazy, loudmouthed idiot, but I like him._

_I respect Cardinal Kate and the other old members of AX._

_Abel. I l…_

She sniffed. She smelt something vaguely familiar to her, but she could not place it. A little ping went off in the back of her mind, and the long-defected chip in the back of her neck prickled slightly, but not uncomfortably. To her, it was more like a little comforting gesture, like a hand on a shoulder.

_Abel. I would kill him if this weren't so sweet. _She smiled slightly to herself.

Moments later she heard footsteps on the cobblestones a few floors below her. There were four sets of light pattering; all within two minutes, and two black-gloved hands were at the sill of the small window set at the top of the cell.

She chuckled lightly and moved to window, having to stand on tiptoes to peer down on Abel's silver head. "Need some help?"

Abel looked up, his glasses flashing in the moonlight. He pouted childishly. "I'm supposed to be asking you that."

"I'm not the one who is about to fall from a five story window." Stella said, happy to be able to laugh, albeit quietly, so as not to awake the guards.

"Yes well, I could have thought this through a little more." Abel said nervously.

Stella rolled her eyes. She pulled the two iron bars from the window and grabbed Abel's hands. Her pulling, and Abel's slightly panicked kicking, they tumbled to the floor of Stella's cell. Abel tried to protect them both by trying to land on his shoulder, while Stella tried to take the impact on her back. They ended up with Stella pinned to the floor with Abel's knees on hers, Abel's hands on either side of her head, and their foreheads each making a painful crack.

"Ow!"

"Damn it!"

Looking at each other fearfully, (and blushing only slightly) Abel and Stella stayed perfectly still, listening for the tromp of guard's feet. Three minutes later, they both sighed in relief. Stella relaxed her neck and allowed her head to bang on the floor.

"Ow."

She felt Abel move off her, but he did not move very far.



Abel sat perfectly still, his back against the metal wall, watching Stella. She did not get up, nor did she crack an eyelid. His senses still riveting from the jumps he made, he could smell a slight tang of salt. Stella sat up and he could see small pink trails that dried tears had made.

"You've been crying." Abel said quietly.

Stella shrugged.

Abel leaned forward a little. "Stella, please, don't tune me out."

Stella smiled a little and opened her eyes. "I never do."

Abel sighed tiredly. "Don't you have enough to tell the priest at confession?"

Stella pushed herself up and leaned forward onto the balls of her feet. She put her arms lightly on her knees. Her face was closer to Abel's than it had ever been, save the fleeting, chaste kiss back in the Empire. She lightly grabbed his chin, to keep his eyes wandering nervously to the side. "Abel. I _always _listen to you, even when you think I don't."

Abel fidgeted mentally. He wanted to reach out and… _Not priest like thoughts! _He yelled at himself mentally. He prayed that Stella would move before he could not resist temptation any longer.

Thankfully, she did, after only ten seconds of being there; she was back standing up, and holding out a hand to him. "Come on, you old man. My hand isn't going to bite."

Abel took her hand. "Old man! Young lady, I'm not that much older than you!"

Stella smiled. "Yeah, I know."

"We're getting off topic."

"Yeah, I know."

"Stella." Abel said seriously. "You need help. If I was in your position," Abel began his lecture, sticking his pointer finger in the air.

Stella listened, or at least did not interrupt. When he was finished she grabbed his hand from the air and gently put it down to waist level. "Father Nightroad," She began.

"Abel." Abel said without thinking.

Stella laughed lightly. "I'm rubbing off on you." Her eyes turned sad and serious again. When she spoke, it was softer than ever. "Abel, I'm not you. All my life I've been alone, figuring things out for myself. I hate to say this, but you can't help me." Abel looked away, pouting again, though a little more mannishly. Stella chuckled and placed a hand on his cheek, bringing his face towards hers again. "I promise, next time I'm in trouble, dying, having inner conflict, or assassinating some sort of world head, you'll be right at my side."

Abel sighed and lowered his head. "I suppose I did not really understand when I said back in the Empire that I could compare your situation to mine. But you need to understand," Abel lifted his head and blinked away tears, "I don't want you to spend the rest of your life in prison."

Stella laughed, though it was forced. "Abel Nightroad, do you honestly think that I would spend the rest of my life in here? If I get bored, I'll break out. Besides," She added quietly, "we're not Terrans. Civilizations rise and fall faster than we can blink an eye. Rome will fall long before this face has aged two years."

Abel nodded. "I suppose you're right. Still, it would be nice to have you out before all of your Terran friends have aged eighty years. I guess I'll go." Abel said. He positioned himself under the window, ready to make the entire fall in one jump.

"Wait, Abel."

Abel turned, and a second later his back was pushed against the wall as Stella flew into his arms. She wrapped her arms around his waist and whispered, "Thank you." Abel stood, startled for a moment, before slowly craning his neck down to rest his head on hers and wrapping his arms around small body.

**A/N: Review!**


	26. Chapter 26

**A/N: Dude, it's two A.M., I was attempting and succeeding for the first time in a week to fall asleep, and this came to me. You'd better appreciate it!**

**Disclaimer: Dude, even if you sued me, you'd get nothing. I'm broke! Oh well… I don't want you take my cookies away… I do not own Trinity Blood.**

"_Ha! Ha! De! Wait for me!"_

_"Come on, Stel! It's the biggest I've seen yet."_

_A man with a slightly scruffy brown hair and laughing blue eyes sat down on the Congo boat, draping an arm about his mate's shoulders. The woman, with long, wavy, dark brown hair laughed slightly at the teenager and child's antics and placed a gentle hand on her mate's. _

_"They're little ruffians." She said, giggling as the children reached their hands into the water._

_"They're all ours." The man replied, burying his nose into her hair. _

_"They should not lean over so." A cold, emotionless voice said. _

_Both adults turned their attention away from each other to a small child sitting close to them, on another bench seat. They both had their own looks of disgust: the mother's narrowed eyes and crinkled nose, a small hand gripping her husband, her rock for support, while the father's was a sneer, holding his mate close to him. _

"_Oh, and how would you know, Lia?" The mother asked coldly, not really paying attention to parental instinct to protect her children, but just to make the girl with white hair wrong._

"_My name is Lyisistrata, and you will address me as such. And how I know," an evil glint entered her eyes, "I'm going to do it."_

_Before either parent could stop her, she was up and dashing. There was a surprised half-yell, a woman's scream, and two men's outraged cry. The boy, Demetry jumped to the railing, only to be pulled back by the crew._

"_Hold him back!" The captain shouted. "There are 'gaters in them waters!"_

_The woman muffled a sob as she turned away from her son, still fighting to get to his sister, by hiding her face in her husband's shirt. The man moved away from his mate and slapped the child who had done the deed so hard, she flew across the boat. The three family members held each other as they watched for the floating brown head._

_The little girl's mouth was filled with water when she surfaced. She screamed and held out her hands, but the only one on that side of the boat was Lysistrata, waving pleasantly and throwing little white flowers into the water as she plucked the petals off. The girl's feet slipped again._

_She opened her eyes to the murky world, to be met by pain. Alligators were after her, big and scary. She surfaced, and saw a thin ray of hope. An old tree limb, held out like the hand of a good friend, reached out over the bank. She reached, grasped and pulled herself free of the water, just as an alligator got her leg…_



Stella's eyes snapped open. Her feet and stomach tingled uncomfortably with the convincing nature of the nightmare. She smiled wryly. _After all I've been through, jumping off cliffs, falling under glaciers, being attacked repeatedly, I remember that?_

She snapped to attention as the door whined. A burly guard stood in the doorway, backed by three others. No matter his numbers, the man seemed undeniably nervous.

"You okay?" Stella asked. She did not want him to empty his bowels in any form in the room she needed to stay in. "You want to use the pit?" She pointed to the hole in the floor.

The man shook his head. "Stella Iceheart, you are to undergo trials to see if you are trustworthy and in control of your own body. If you prove to pass the tests…"

"Then I'll be let out under strict supervision, yadda yadda." Stella waved a dismissive hand. "Look, kiddo, I've been through this before. Let's go and see what your Pope has up for me, eh?" She stuck out her arms. The man stared blankly. Stella cocked and eyebrow. "What? You're not going to handcuff me? You know, 'clap her in iron and through her in the dungeon'…"Stella quoted the famous line.

"Er… no."

"Oh so this is one of the tests."

"Um… I'm not allowed to say that…"

"But I've figured it out. And you're going to get in trouble." Stella loved watching as the tiny Terran's brains struggled to keep up with her. He opened his mouth to say something but she shook her head. "Don't worry. I won't let them know. It's like a surprise party I found out about early… except my life is at stake." She gave a little laugh.



BOOM!

"Damn it, Tres! I was supposed to knock and give him warning! What is he's not decnt?"

"Let the robot have his fun, son. Besides, since when has Abel been awake at this ungodly hour? Abel? ABEL!"

"It's all right, Leon… the door crashing into the room woke me up." Abel said wearily, already dressed from his midnight rendezvous.

Leon Jr. came into the room like a bull in a china shop. "Well come on, the Cardinal wants to speak with us! Er… Abel, why are you already dressed… and in bed?"

Before Abel could think of a reply, Leon Sr. had smacked him upside the head. "Eh, leave him alone, Michael. In fact, out! Go make sure Tres isn't terrorizing poor Sister Ellen!" As Michael left, Leon Sr. let out a grunt-sigh and a smile. "Besides, he is probably tired from last night's little escapade."

"Eh?" Abel's eyes widened fully and he sat up straighter. "I assure you, Father Leon, I have no idea what you are talking about."

Leon let out a raspy laugh. "Of course, Nightroad, of course." He got and left, but stopped at the doorway. "Next time I'm not gonna clean up the mud in the hallway."

**A/N: I wanted to keep going, but I figured this would be a good place to stop. Besides, this chapter is important and I do not want to over-stimulate your little minds. Review!**

**Happy Thanksgiving! **


	27. Chapter 27

**A/N: ….**

**Disclaimer: Shouldn't the word 'disclaimer' put you guys off?**

Kate sighed. It had been a trying week; from the return of her staff, to Stella's defiant trial, she had not gotten much 'down time', the time where her brainwaves were able to slink back into her comatose body in a substitute for sleep. She read the notice on her desk again and did not believe she would for several more days.

_Cardinal Kate:_

_It is the Pope's pleasure to inform you that rather soon the trails of Stella Iceheart will be over quite soon. Further information will be relayed today at three o'clock. It has been asked that you tell no one for this particular event will not call for the many friends of Miss Iceheart. You must understand the judges cannot be swayed against or for Miss Iceheart during this judgment. That is all._

_Lord Adeodatus_

"Cardinal Kate, I have retrieved Fathers…"

"Thank-you, Tres." Kate interrupted. "Now would you please stand aside so they can come in…" She trailed off wearily.

In filed an eager Abel, the Leon family (both of whom took up positions leaning against the wall) and old William Walter Wordsworth. Kate always felt guilty around William, having not matured at all while he aged into his early sixties.

Behind Wordsworth was a young man, a teenage boy, really. At the moment, he was struggling with the various charts and books Walter had hid tow around. He had mousy brown hair cut into a long style half an inch below the jaw line, simply brushed evenly on either side of his face with a part in the exact center of his head. (A/n: Imagine those weird little boys that work for Sulliman in Howl's Moving Castle) Freckles were speckled across his narrow cheeks. Round glasses that the lad constantly needed to push up sat on his tiny, yet-to-be-grown nose. Always he was dressed neatly, wearing practical white shirts and warm green vests. He had the same pair of brown loafers he had had the year before, and from these stretched long white socks, into which his pants were tucked in the old style.

His name was James, an orphaned boy that William had recognized as a great talent. Two years ago, Wordsworth and Kate had gone to a community science fair, more to make a public appearance than anything. There had been nothing worthwhile; it was mostly miniature volcanoes or (at best) primitive looking communication devices. Finally, they had arrived at a small presentation.

Williams had stopped as the boy turned on the old lamp that started the entire thing. It was an old, cleaned aquarium, filled up to six inches with dirt as well as a small pond, about the size of a fist. A few minutes later, the small crowd that had gathered gasped. There was rain in the aquarium. The boy had explained his theory on artificial ecosystems, and had gone on to explain possibilities.

When the boy lost to a three-time winner, William had been outraged. The boy slipped away, but when Kate found out that he was an orphan, she and Wordsworth had tracked the boy down within two weeks. Walter (never having a chance to have children) adopted the boy and named him his apprentice. Kate still remembered the smile that lit up his old face when the boy had hugged him.

Now, James shadowed William constantly. Whenever William made one of his ludicrous claims or blew something up, the boy was always scribbling something down in the little brown leather-bound notebook that fit in his pocket. Kate never knew whether or not the boy was writing notes on what the Professor was saying, or reminding himself never to make that mistake again.

"Cardinal, you wanted to see us?" Abel reminded her gently.

Kate looked at Abel, the first time she had actually looked at him all day. He looked as tired as she felt. She nodded. "Yes. Here, pass this around." She handed the note to Abel, who skimmed it quickly, then handed it off to Walter. As the group read the note (and James took a moment to quickly copy it into his notebook), Kate started speaking, "I will go to the meeting and report what happens in it to you, to the best of my ability." She paused, unsure if she should continue with her thoughts, but eye contact with a tired-looking Abel made her speak again. "I don't like how this Lord Adeodatus phrases these trials. They sound like the witch burnings that happened after Armageddon. I want all of you to try and find out whatever you can about this new Lord. We will meet at a later time to speak more on this. Any questions?"

There were five unanimous, "No."'s and one…

"Negative."



Stella fidgeted anxiously, shuffling her feet without the guards knowing. She wished Kate would hurry up; she was a hologram, after all. Okay, so Stella was a Titan, born to stalk in the night. Born to sit quietly and wait for her prey to come to her, then pounce. In a nutshell, born to the patient hunt. But then again, she was born Stella, so of course she was impatient and wanted something to happen right then and there. She would even settle for an impossible mission to some dark dissolute place in the farthest reaches of Antarctica to redeem herself. Of course, she would complain about it and be totally outraged at the audacity of it, but she would settle for it.

They were standing right outside the chapel, waiting for the last member of their party to arrive. They, being Stella, the two guards holding the cuffs at her hands and shackles at her feet, an old man who had been referred to (though he had not introduced himself) as Cardinal Franesco De Medici, and the man next to Stella, who had introduced himself as Lord Adeodatus. They, of course, were waiting for Cardinal Kate.

Stella eyed the Lord next to her closely. It was the same man who had sat to the right of the Pope during her trial. His clothes were not priest's clothes nor were they an Inquisition officer's uniform, but Stella could still derive something from it. He wore a white button-up shirt tucked into his trousers. Stemming from his long black pants was a heavy, gaudy gold chain that was most likely attached to some type of pocket watch or an extremely elaborate cross. He had shiny black shoes as well as a black trench coat. The difference between Stella's and his, however, was that his (like all his clothes) looked very new and expensive.

Out of her natural Titan's habit, Stella began to observe his features. Dark haired flowed past his shoulders, down to center on his back, loosely held with a piece of black ribbon. A sharp nose perfectly centered his face, making him seem like the perfectionist type. He had a wide, thin mouth that was set in a natural frown. His eyes were sharp and cold. Not only that, but Stella could detect a strange light in them. Every time he looked at the sun, or his head moved slightly, his eyes seemed to have a white light flash across them.

Stella was about move her head to see his eyes better, when a new cast of light caught her attention. Cardinal Kate's hologram floated almost wearily in front of her. They were all assembled.

After formalities were exchanged, Adeodatus made an attempt at a pleasant smile and ushered them all into the church.

**A/N: sorry for the wait, but hey, I wanted to get it out before Christmas. Whew, that's cutting it close. One hour to go. Happy holidays and happy belated Hanukkah. I just saw Fiddler on the Roof the play in Baltimore, and I can't wait to learn more about my Jewish roots. Definitely worth seeing. Review!**


	28. Chapter 28

**A/N: I'm thinking about doing an extra story on Leon, to show how Leon Jr. came around… not like that. Tell me if anyone's interested in the story, but I'll warn you, there's heavy use of drugs and Leon's mom is definitely not a Sister… also, this is most likely to be a tragedy-drama-thing… yeah…**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Trinity Blood. Maybe if I stop putting interesting stuff here, you will stop looking here.**

Adeodatus had his audience sit in the pews as he stood on the first step of the flight of stairs leading to the altar. The Cardinals both sat in the pew behind Stella, and Stella sat in between both of her guards, still trying to get a look at his eyes.

Adeodatus nodded his head in the direction of each person as he addressed them, "Lord, Lady, officers," Adeodatus's pasted-on smile grew wider, "Miss Iceheart." He seemed to pause for a moment, as if expecting an answer.

Stella inwardly smirked. _Ha! He must of heard of my preference of being called Stella, and was expecting me to say something._ The satisfaction leached away as her brain began analyzing the information. _But why would he want me to contradict him? Is he looking for me to get in more trouble… or is there another motive? What other motive is there, though? To know me on a personal level? That makes no sense…unless he is planning something._ Stella stored the information away as Adeodatus began talking again.

"I have thought deeply on the subject, and I have decided how best to secure Miss Icheart's loyalty and disprove any thoughts that His Holiness the Pope's council have that Miss Iceheart plans on doing anything like what she did in the past few months; however valuable the freedom of those she saved, the actions she took to produce the final product were unacceptable." Adeodatus turned and faced the altar, spreading his arms wide. "I stand before the eyes of God as a representative of his Holiness the Pope and declare that Stella Iceheart will go through three trials to prove her sanctity, sanity and her submission to serve." Adeodatus turned back to his audience and bowed. " The first of the trials is to start tomorrow, inside this very place of worship. All are welcome. I thank you, Cardinal Franesco, Cardinal Kate, for joining us today." Adeodatus held his hands on the small of his back and walked, with perfect posture out a side door of the church.

Stella would have bared her fangs at him, if she did not have two guards looking for a reason to beat her unconscious as well as two Cardinals, though they were currently praying (or at least pretending to). So she settled for snarling at him in her mind. Because they had to wait for the two praying world figures behind them, Stella was able to hold onto this image for a while and let it grow. Just as she had a rabid dog begin to disembowel him, she heard footsteps.

A few seconds later, Cardinal Kate's hologram evidently sensed something as well, for there was a movement of light behind Stella. The humans turned their heads a half a minute later as well.

A young man, probably a bishop's son or just a choirboy trying to rise in the ranks of the church, stepped briskly into the room. He had blonde hair and a pinched face, which he attempted to make look serene and calm. He walked up to the Cardinals and, after a moment of indecision, handed the note to the only solid one of the two.

Cardinal Franesco squinted at the note, before handing it to one of the officers in front of him, muttering about forgetting his reading glasses. The Inquisition officer read it quickly, and then held it in front of Stella, as her hands were shackled.

"S' for you, miss." He said, with a thick Moorish accent.

Stella dispassionately read the short note in seconds.

_Stella Iceheart shall henceforth be held in the reformatory that is located below ground, regardless of any doctor's report._

_-Lord Adeodatus_

Adeodatus had referred to the doctor's report given to the Inquisition officers soon after Stella's incarceration. It had said she had fainted because of air pressure differences, but Stella was sure it was something else.

_In the prison below ground? Why? There is no point in that. _Stella thought, her brow furrowing.

"Miss?" The same guard that had handed her note got her attention. "We got to take ye' bock to the cell, if'n ye unnerstand."

Stella smiled toothily at him. "If I didn't, does that mean I get to stay out here?" The guard looked baffled for a minute before Stella chuckled deep in her throat, an amused sound that revealed her animal side. "Don't worry, kid (here is where the man's bafflement turned into alarm; he appeared to be at least ten years older than Stella) I was only joking." Stella raised her arms and hung her head comically. "To the dudgeon!" She said dramatically, earning chuckles from the guard, a slight frown from Kate, and a glare of disapproval from Cardinal Franesco (the chuckles were thus quieted).

The group left the cathedral together, then separated, Stella and her guards walking briskly in the setting sun (it was winter, so though it was barely five thirty, the sun was falling below the horizon) toward the dark, forbidding building of the Inquisition.

The main room was finery itself. The walls and floors were made to look of marble, while the rock itself could be found in any of the imitation statues of the most famous busts in the world. Paintings made on canvases so dark, it could have been velvet (and might have, these were all obviously painted by the same man) hung on the walls, adjacent to long tapestries that were draped from the two story-high ceiling to the floor. All of the tapestries and paintings were pictures of heaven and hell; of God and of demons. Persian rugs were found on the floor, surrounded by gangs of chairs and loveseats that most likely had been there for fifty years (as far as stella could tell from the designs), but had never been sat on.

The splendor of the room was lost of Stella, as she naturally looked around for escape routes without moving her head. No windows, no extra doors that were not attended by an officer.

The guards led her to two, large steel doors that reached twice the height and length of normal doors. Four sentinels were positioned, two on each side of the doors, to stay still as statues. However, as Stella's escorts, as she was beginning to think of them, they stiffened and their hands twitched to the swords at their hips as they glared at Stella, daring her to make a threatening move. Stella did not indulge herself in growling, knowing that her bruises from the last time had not yet faded.

One of her guards whispered with the four guardians before stepping back into place in front of her. It took the four guards to open the huge doors. Stella shuddered involuntarily. The hallway was just as she remembered it; sinister, dim, and vaguely familiar.

Stella felt a light tug on her chain and turned at her guard, the same one she had called kid, looking at her nervously. "We've gotta go down naow, marm."

Stella nodded.

Slowly they began their descent. The first step, Stella's eye hurt. _Damn it, my mind is trying to play tricks on me. _

The fourth step, Stella's head began to swim. She swallowed, and a moment later, her saliva was back at the front of her mouth. Her breaths came in short gasps. She panted. The meat on her captor's leg began to look extremely juicy as she had the animalistic urge to sink her fangs into his thigh. _Not again! _Stella thought, before slumping to the ground.

**A/N: anyone want to have a guess as to why this keeps happening? Anyway, you guys gotta tell me if you want the new Trinity Blood story, because I have a style of writing that always makes me timid before starting a story. Tell me, peoples!**


	29. Chapter 29

**A/N: Not one guess about why Stella keeps fainting, huh? That's pretty depressing. Oh well. There's a big hint in the… third paragraph after the first partition.**

**Disclaimer: I do not have the energy right now to come up with something witty and fun for you to read, so I'm just going to say this as painlessly as possibly: I do not own Trinity Blood.**

"Ha! Ha! De! Wait for me!"

"Come on, Stel! It's the biggest I've seen yet."

A man with a slightly scruffy brown hair and laughing blue eyes sat down on the Congo boat, draping an arm about his mate's shoulders. The woman, with long, wavy, dark brown hair laughed slightly at the teenager and child's antics and placed a gentle hand on her mate's.

"They're little ruffians." She said, giggling as the children reached their hands into the water.

"They're all ours." The man replied, burying his nose into her hair.

"They should not lean over so." A cold, emotionless voice said.

Both adults turned their attention away from each other to a small child sitting close to them, on another bench seat. They both had their own looks of disgust: the mother's narrowed eyes and crinkled nose, a small hand gripping her husband, her rock for support, while the father's was a sneer, holding his mate close to him.

"Oh, and how would you know, Lia?" The mother asked coldly, not really paying attention to parental instinct to protect her children from falling, but just to make the girl with white hair wrong.

"My name is Lyisistrata, and you will address me as such. And how I know is," an evil glint entered her eyes, "because I'm going to do it."

Before either parent could stop her, she was up and dashing across the boat. There was a surprised half-yell, a woman's scream, and two men's outraged cry. The boy, Demetry jumped to the railing, only to be pulled back by the crew.

"Hold him back!" The captain shouted. "There are 'gaters in them waters!"

The woman muffled a sob as she turned away from her son, still fighting to get to his sister, by hiding her face in her husband's shirt. The man moved away from his mate and slapped the child who had done the deed, so hard, she flew across the boat. The three family members held each other as they watched for the floating brown head.

The little girl's mouth was filled with water when she surfaced. She screamed and held out her hands, but the only one on that side of the boat was Lysistrata, waving pleasantly and throwing little white flowers into the water as she plucked the petals off. The girl's feet slipped again.

She opened her eyes to the murky world, to be met by pain. Alligators were after her, big and scary. She surfaced, and saw a thin ray of hope. An old tree limb, held out like the hand of a good friend, reached out over.



Stella awoke in a cell much like the one she had been in before. She mentally sighed without opening her eyes. _That again? What's with that dream? Is it trying to tell me something? _As she slowly opened her eyes and lifted her body from the cold stone ground, however, she could more clearly see the differences. There was no window, and no lamps in the cell; all light came from small gas lamps (which filled the air with the scent of kerosene) out in the hall. There were bars on the entrance of her pen, and three steel walls, though the steel walls in this cell had dents roughly the size of human hands in them. Last (and most disturbing of all) she could see men in other cells, looking at her lecherously.

Stella suppressed a shudder of revulsion and stood up. She crossed her arms in front of her and snorted. _Couldn't even put me in the bed, if you can call it that. _The cot was little more than a wire frame with a brown-red cloth stretched taunt over it.

All at once, she realized why there was no window. She was back underground. Her mouth suddenly went dry and her body began shaking. The back of her neck burned in the shape of a small square. She gulped down air, but still red dots were swimming before her eyes as if she was drowning. She vaguely felt herself falling, and heard the resounding crack of her skull against the metal of the bed. Then, she saw and heard no more.



Abel's calves burned and his knees cracked as he walked briskly across the lawns of the church's grounds. A gentle breeze scratched achingly against his cheeks, which burned from standing so long exposed to the elements of cold. He had been looking for William Wordsworth all day, but thus far, there had been no sign of the Professor.

"Hey! Abel! Where're you going?" Leon Jr. jogged to keep up with Abel's long stride, which, although he had been traveling quickly all day, had not broken for a single trip, fall, or stumble.

"Looking for my dear friend the Professor, and the one time I need him, he isn't setting off some explosion somewhere so I can _find _him!" Abel grumbled, yelling the last few words.

Leon skidded to a stop. "The Professor? He just got back from the university; he's in his room now."

Abel let out a groan-scream as he turned on his heel and walked in the complete opposite direction that he had been traveling in.



"James, if you wouldn't mind, I would like you to take these notes to the…"

There was a loud (louder than what was strictly necessary) rapping on William's door. He stared at the door for no more than a moment before whoever it was, was at it again, knocking continuously.

He moved as quickly as a sixty year old could and undid the bolt that was on the door. In front of him stood a very annoyed looking, silver-haired preist. He smiled warmly.

"Ah, Abel, what brings you to my humble abode this fine day?"

"It is not such a fine day for someone who has been looking high and low for you." Abel said, still slightly snappish from walking around in the cold, before-snow wind.

The old professor frowned and stepped aside, noticing for the first time that Abel's cheeks were rubbed raw; the day was not that terrible out. He must have been in and out of the breeze all day. As Abel stepped inside and made his way to the table (which Walter was motioning to), William called to James.

"James, scratch that. Get a fire going and some hot tea of the table. Don't forget the sugar… don't look at me like that! I know I'm not supposed to have sugar, it's not for me!" William had been talking calmly until he got to the sugar part; getting old was not fun.

Abel had removed his glasses and was massaging the bridge of his nose. William sat down with that old man's easiness that bespoke he had experienced it all in his day and was sure that he would be able to help the younger (though not literally, of course, just emotionally) man.

James strode back in on his long legs and placed a tray with two steaming cups of brown tea, two small cups of two different types of sugars and a small cup of cream. As William took care of Abel's tea (under the watchful eye of James), he took a brief moment to look at the china. White with gold rims and flowers of intertwining gold and pink. Slightly feminine, but it had been a gift from Kate (whom he never had taken to calling 'Cardinal'). William put the cup in Abel's cold hand and took a sip of his own (it was too strong without the sugar).

"Now my friend, what is it that yow needed me for?"



Abel swallowed a sigh. There was so much that he wanted to say, but he feared that there was too little time. Although Abel had to be at least nine-hundred and eighty years older than him, Walter seemed to possess knowledge of people that Abel did not. Of course, only fifty of those years were spent around actual people, and those people were often the people who found talking of past missions and efficiency of different weapons and battle tactics as fun conversation or it was spent around people who could speak tirelessly of God, quoting pages upon pages of the bible as answers to simple questions. The men, for ever since the death of Noelle and Esther's queening, there was only one woman apart of AX that was not Lady Catherine or Cardinal Kate (and Abel strongly believed the conversation he was about to have was not fitting to have with them) was currently locked behind bars on ridiculous grounds.

"It's Stella…"

William's face broke into a grin, the laugh lines around his eyes folding into themselves; long ago he had decided that life was meant to live (though he still liked to contribute to the scientific community for the 'good of future generations') and he could almost never be found frowning (in fact, it was a call for serious warning if the light of laughter left his eyes for even a minute). "I had a feeling it would be."

Abel frowned for a moment before deciding to let the insinuating comment drop. "She's fainted again."

William frowned. He had heard the last time Stella had fainted. She had a small seizure beforehand and then had gone limp. "Oh?"

Abel nodded eagerly. "From what I know, she's never had a problem before, and she would have told me if she has epilepsy."

William paused. "Are you sure, Abel? She does keep a lot of secrets to herself."

Abel shook his head quickly. "No. She's already told me her greatest secret, and she would have told me for safety's sake if nothing else."

William leaned back in his chair with an old groan, feeling his shoulders and back pop as he did so. His scientist's brain was already working on devouring the problem at hand. First step: define the variables. "Where was she this time?"

Abel thought back to the report he had received from Tres earlier that morning and later in the day. "The first time she fainted was when the guards were bringing her down again into the cells…"

"Ah! There you go. Her mind is subconsciously rebelling against captivity." William grinned broadly, certain he had found the answer.

Abel shook his head. "This afternoon, the camera in her cell detected movement. She woke up, looked around and fainted again."

William frowned. Then he seemed to think again. "How about the dark? Was it dark all three times?"

Abel shook his head. "The hallways are well-lit and even if they weren't, Stella would be able to use the slightest bit of light to her advantage with her night vision."

"Hmm…" William put his face on top of his fisted hand, the thumb resting on the ledge of his bottom lip, in the classic 'thinking pose'. Suddenly he shot off the chair, smiling with certainty. "I've got it!"

Abel looked at him warily, hoping that he was right this time. "Well?"

"Each time she fainted, she was either being led underground or underground, right?"

Abel nodded, the absolute abstractness of his questions raising his hopes.

"And when you first came to the sight of the house where her little sister was, you said that there were stones around that wire buried, and that there was a mark where a bed a machinery had been, which of course mean that the girl, Lysistrata, was held in the basement."

Abel nodded again.

William's smile began receding from his face. "Which corresponds with the reports from several of the victims including Mau, who was proven sane?"

Once again, Abel nodded.

William's face set in a grim line. "I know what's wrong with Stella."

"What?" Abel asked loudly, resisting the urge to move forward and force the answer out of the old man.

William turned his back to Abel, looking out the window. Finally, he uttered quietly, "It's far worse than any case I've ever heard of. Traumatic shock."

"What?" Abel cried. "That can't be! She's been fine since we got back from the Empire, besides being in jail."

William shook his head sadly, becoming more and more certain with each passing moment. "We haven't been able to watch her closely enough, and she's been left alone to often; too much time for her to think."

Abel became quiet; the Professor was certain, and until he had reason to believe otherwise, he was going to trust in what his friend said. "So what does this mean for Stella?" Abel asked gravely.

William turned his head towards Abel, and in the dying light of sunset, Abel could finally see how much time had aged his friend. "It means that she is in far more danger than the Inquisition could ever put her in."

**A/N: Woot! A long time in coming, but the chapter came out good. Review!**

**P.S. I'm going to do a story as soon as this story is done about what happened to all our favorite characters in the thirty years Abel was gone. A chapter or two on everyone: Esther, Catherine, Hugue, Vanessa, Virgil, and all the rest. Of course, Leon gets his own story. What do you guys think?**


	30. Chapter 30

**A/N: Well, it's chapter thirty, overall chapter seventy-two in the series and thanks to all of you who have followed it from the beginning! **

**I have officially hit a wall: I NEED INSPIRATION!! So, for anyone who knows the title of an inspiring/blood-pumping/generally good song then please, please tell me. I'm dying inside! Please no rap (whatsoever), R&B (unless it is really good) or pop (again unless it is really good). I am a rock girl and will be till the day I die. I like everything from alternative to punk to oldies to gothic, so send me anything!**

**Disclaimer: False hope for the low, low price of one easy payment of a song title!**

Catherina walked the long halls slowly, her wrinkled hands sliding along the red-painted walls. She passed a small decorative table, a door, and a large green vase before leaning on the wall with a groan. Taking a deep breath, she began to walk again. A picture, two more doors, and a window later, she was leaning on the wall again. She looked up from behind her once-blonde locks tiredly.

_I hate… getting old. Damn Abel and Stella and Vanessa and Virgil for their eternal youth. _Quickly she crossed herself and continued on.

The woman had celebrated her sixty-sixth birthday a few months ago. Though there were others certainly older than her, she was still old enough to feel the pains of arthritis and been considerably slowed by bronchitis, which she always seemed to catch just in time for Christmas. Her legs burned and her chest felt heavy, but she refused to go to William for a wheelchair. She refused to let her age get the better of her… at least until Francesco did.

Her brother. Amazingly, although he was six years older than her, he was still Cardinal. To her credit, she staved Leon Sr., Jr., Kate, Alessandro, Woordsworth, James, Tres (though his argument was more often 'it is suggested for you to begin a less stressful job to live longer'), and finally Abel for two years (though Abel was only there for the last few months of one) before she had been convinced to retire. Francesco, however, was not lucky to have friends like his sister and brother. He got along well enough with Petros and had gotten along well enough with Sister Paula, but this was only a superior-subordinate relationship.

Had because Paula Souwauski had passed recently, loosing a long battle with cancer. It had been a hard thing to watch, though Catherina did not particularly like the woman. It had been saddening to watch the once-strong woman reduced to a state so weakened and in so much pain that she would ask anyone who came in the room to kill her. Once, she had pleaded with tears in her eyes to Leon Sr., Hugue, and Petros to do it for her. Still more heartbreaking were her last moments, with the Pope, the Cardinals, and Brother Petros in the room with her, sitting around her bed. She had called them there, claiming that death was near. She briefly acknowledged the Cardinals, who sat on either side by her feet, but turned her attention to the Pope and Petros. She apologized, this time tears flowing down only Alessandro's cheeks and welling in Petros's, for not being a good enough solider and for not protecting the Pope until the end. Then her heart stopped.

Catherina shook these thoughts from her head. She needed all the concentration she had to speak with her younger brother.

Never before had Alessandro acted so like Francesco. He had always been patient and understanding. And ever since the unfortunate incidents in Albion before Esther's crowning, he had become more and more independent. However, she knew that a month ago, he had hired a man, claiming to have ancient ties to Feudal times, Adeodatus. The man had checked out; or at least the documentation he provided did.

She might have been old, but her sharp mind had not dulled at all. She was sure that Adeodatus was somehow manipulating her brother. She was just unsure _how._

She stopped, coming to the door that led to her brother's office. She knocked once, twice. She heard a muffled "come in" and opened the door.

Her brother sat behind a desk, he looked up and smiled jupon her entering, sticking a finger up into the air to signify he would be with her in a moment. She sat and watched as he gently took a candle from its holder and turned it, still burning, to its side. Crimson wax dripped onto an envelop that sat in front of him. He waited no more than a minute and a half before pressing his ring, a present from the church to him, into the rapidly-cooling wax. When he was done, he put the envelop to the side and clasped his hands on the desk.

"Catherina, dear sister, what can I do for you?"

Catherina watched her brother's face carefully, as if she could catch some trace of difference from his usual features. His face was like that of Fransessco's, with his high cheekbones and slightly pointed nose, however, the usual imposing affect was diluted, as Alessandro had Catherina's gentle chin and complexion. His head, shouldered by forty-six years, was covered by gray-mottled thinning brown hair. Alessandro's eyes, usually bright and strong (as he had grown ever more confident since his first trip to Albion) were slightly worried, and he seemed to be fifteen again; unsure of his next move.

Well, best not leave him in suspense.

"Alessandro, why are you doing this?"

An odd look crossed the man-boy's face. "Doing what?"

Catherina gestured impatiently with her hand, "This business with Stella!"

Alessandro frowned, his look darkening and he rapidly becoming the man he was again… or the man he was pretending to be. "She is impure and an abomination. Further more, she is uncontrollable. Who knows what she will…"

"Are these your words, or the words from someone else?" Catherina interrupted darkly, but calmly. Using a loud voice would get her nowhere, and it was not good for her blood pressure.

Alessandro looked stricken. He took a moment to recover, as he knew better than to lie to his older sister, never mind being the Pope and lying in front of God. "I… They may be someone else's words, but they are my thoughts."

"Are they, Alessandro?" Catherina questioned quietly. "Are they?" she repeated.

The Pope stuttered a few times. Unfortunately, he was saved by a knock at the door. Without waiting for a sign to enter, Adeodatus entered. He smiled fluidly at Catherina, before turning his attention to Alessandro.

"My Lord the Pope, Lady Catherina, there seems to be some tension in the air, what may be the problem?"

Alessandro piped up like the small child nobody in class liked very much. "We are discussing Stella Iceheart. My sister seems to think that the agent deserves to be let free."

Adeodatus was pretending to be surprised, Catherina was sure of it. "Oh? Really, Miss Catherina, I would think that you would be the first to support Miss Iceheart's incarceration, seeing as her unreliability unstableness is a threat to your very brother's well-being."

"Stella is _not _unreliable," Catherina blurted before she could stop herself.

Adeodatus pursed his handsome lips. "Oh really? Tell me, Catherina, when Father Nightroad first came upon Miss Iceheart, was she not in a fit of rage, and killed officers of her home land?"

"Those officers were wrong and they were killing her!" Catherina defended her agent.

Adeodatus smiled, and shook his head at her, tutting slightly. "But what about her missions after that? Tres has reported that she barely managed to defeat her beast, and claimed that if she had not, she would have ripped her two comrades apart. And then she disappeared for months," he smoothly slid behind her chair, placing his hands on either side of the wood and leaning his face, so that his words snaked into her ear. "What if her beast of her absence results in the death of your brother, the Pope?"

Feeling his words resonate in her soul, and the way his aura made her feel was all Catherina could do to keep from shuddering.

Alessandro, as if from some brotherly instinct, seemed to notice her distress. He barked, "Enough!" startling, both Lord Adeodatus and her. The Lord rose slowly to a standing position, stepping away from Catherina, for which she was glad. She sent her brother and thankful look, which he nearly beamed at. "Leave us," he said to Adeodatus.

The Lord looked to argue, but a pointed look from Alessandro, which made him look even more like Francesco, sent him on his way, not looking at pleased. His displeasure warmed Catherina to an extent. She turned her attention back to her brother, who, she was alarmed to see, had laid his head onto the desk. Her sisterly instincts made her jump from the chair, ignoring her old joints, and put a gentle hand on his back.

"Alessandro? Alessandro, are you all right?" she asked, trying but failing not to let her panic show through.

Alessandro raised his head, and she could see wet tear streaks. He had not cried in front of her since he was a teenager. "Catherina I don't know what to do!" He exclaimed. "If I go the way Adeodatus wants to go, an innocent woman will live her life for years in torture and her friends in a similar predicament. If I go your way, I could be putting myself and others in danger!" He seemed to slow down for a moment. He looked straight forward, at the door, and spoke his thoughts allowed. "Although the suffering on her part will be great, and I'm sure on the others' as well, I cannot allow people to be hurt for just their comfort. It wouldn't be right. At least, that is what justice would say." He looked back to his sister, as if looking for conformation that he was right.

Catherina tried to smile warmly and leaned down to hug her brother. She gently kissed his forehead and pulled away, though not too far, intending to make every word count. "This is a decision that you must think about with your heart. Step away from all the _mights _and the _maybes_ and think about the people at stake here. Should you decide to exile Stella, many of the members of AX, which I will remind you are the only people who are competently dealing with rebellious Methuselah anymore will quit. One day, they will simply be gone. You must remember that Adeodatus only came a few months ago; Stella has been in our hearts for nearly half a year. This is no large number, but has this man proved himself in anyway loyal. How dare he presume to pass judgment without being judged. And," she leaned down, lowering her voice as she did so, "I know Stella. She would never harm anyone or betray you. She will put herself in the path of a rain of bullets for the Inquisition officers that hold her in prison now. Think on that, if you will." She raised herself to her full height. "Tonight, I pray for her, Your Holiness. Her, and your decision."

She walked to the door of the room, pausing, hoping to hear something, anything from her brother.

"I… will think on it," Alessandro said, finally.

Catherina closed her eyes in relief and nodded her head to show she heard. She left the room, then, closing the door. She had walked only a few steps when Adeodatus stepped from the shadows. She clutched her chest as her shock caused her skin to singe.

Adeodatus smiled slightly (oh how she hated that smile), "Careful, Sister Catherina, we don't want you to have a heart attack." His tone said differently.

When Catherina only narrowed her eyes at him, he chuckled in his throat and walked back towards the Pope's office, straight-backed with his hands clasped behind him.

Her eyes slid until she could see his body no longer, and then she began walking again.

**A/N: I know this chapter took forever but I've had no inspiration lately, and I think it was worth the wait, I really enjoyed writing this chapter and I hope you guys like it as much as I think you will. Review!**


	31. Chapter 31

**A/N: Hi all!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Trinity Blood.**

"Miss… miss Iceheart…?"

Stella stayed as still as death, feeling that if she moved, she would loose the lunch she did not eat. The timid voice once again tried to get her attention before a snappish, all-too-familiar voice could be heard.

"For the sake of his Holiness, soldier. Iceheart, wake up!"

Stella groaned and rolled over on the cot, so her feet touched her floor. Her stomach churned, but she found that she could at least open her eyes. When she found that she could stand without swaying, she turned her attention to the two men in front of her cell.

Finley, the Chief Inquisitor soldier, was looking down his nose at her. Stella was sorely tempted to flash a tooth at him and snarl back, just to watch the look on his pompous face as he fell in fear and shock, but she kept her face an emotionless mask, reciting in her head the five rules of engagement her father had taught her and Demetry when they were quite young.

_One: do not engage in an opponent until necessary.  
_"Iceheart, it is time for you to begin your trials as Lord Adeodatus…" Finley began a lengthy speech recalling the last meeting with the Adeodatus.

_Two: watch and evaluate your opponent's movements, stance and fighting techniques. _

Finley smiled and Stella imagined that he thought that his face was quite disarming. His teeth were far too big and smile too forced (and so unlike a certain priest she knew) to be anything close to charming.

_Three: do not speak; it wastes energy and is a foolish technique to try and strike fear into your opponent. _

Stella held out her arms. The nervous man that was quivering behind Finley was roughly pushed forward by his commander. Shaking, he clapped the special handcuffs on her. She wanted to offer comfort to him, tell him that he was doing fine, but Finley was just a few feet away and she did not wish to say anything in front of him. She stayed silent.

"Let's go." Finely's voice reverberated off the stone walls.

Stella girt her teeth, his voice annoying her.

_Four: do not engage your opponent until he or she engages you._

Finley stepped into the cell. Stella noticed that he did not until she was properly shackled. He walked straight up to her. The audacity in that, a mere Terran thinking he may approach a healthy, adult Titan was astounding to Stella. It was like a zebra walking up to a sleeping lioness and smiling in her face.

When Stella did not move, Finely chuckled and patted her face with his mail-clothed hand. "See, soldier? She's not going to bite you."

Stella resisted the urge. The zebra was now nudging the lioness. She had broken chain mail before… with just her teeth.

_Five: never doubt that an opponent can be a male, female or even a child. _

The small, nervous soldier tugged on the chain that was attached to the handcuffs, causing Stella's arms to raise in a jerking motion. Stella mentally growled at his new-found arrogance to think that he, a weak little mite of a Terran could possibly do this to her if she did not want to be there. Silently she began making up an extremely long and loud speech to Abel that if he didn't have such a nice demeanor…

…and such endearing clumsiness…

… and a leg-melting smile…

… and gorgeous eyes…

_Yeah, best keep your head out of those thoughts. _Stella thought to herself. Endearing and leg melting and gorgeous, since when did she use those words? Good God, she was talking to herself now! She wondered briefly if she was going mad.

_Well, there are far worse types of madness than this._

The problem was, she did not know what _this _was.



Alessandro nervously rubbed his small hands together. Catching himself, he forced his arms to hand by his sides. No matter what he did today, he would end up angering many powerful people. However, he believed he had made a good choice.

If Adeodatus was right, (and Alessandro _had_ to have had a reason to place his trust in the man so quickly, though for the life of him he could not guess what) Alessandro could be putting his life at risk for putting Stella back where she could loose control. He could not risk his life, for there was no true favorite to win an election, and manipulative people could easily take the power for themselves.

However, many disapproved of Stella's imprisonment, including himself and even Francesco, who, by past behaviors, was more likely to rant and rave until Stella was clapped in chains in the darkest dungeon. Many people assured him that Stella was in complete control and they had never lied to him before.

He had to make a choice that would pacify everyone. Not only that, but because Adeodatus had announced his decree of three trials (Alessandro had yet to tell anyone that he had not issued such a decree) inside a church under his name, he would look the fool if he did not put her through three trials.

So his decision was the right one, then.

Right?

"Your Holiness?"

Alessandro turned to one of his bishops, a hooded man who fingered his beads nervously. "I'm coming," he said shortly.



If Abel was surprised at the number of people at Stella's hearing, then when he entered the church he was damn well near astounded. The pews were more packed today than they were on a regular church day.

In the front pews, he could see Demetry, Cardinal Kate, Cardinal Francesco, Seth, Virgil and Vanessa (though the last three and Kate were holograms). Taking up four pews behind them, were all the living AX members, many Inquisition guards (Abel recognized the loose-lipped sentry that had first guarded Stella's cell), and (Abel shivered and shook with anger his audacity) sitting right behind Demetry was Lord Adeodatus. Next to the Lord, Abel realized with a start, was Mau, the man who had told them what had happened the day Stella had killed her sister. The old-young man (for after his ordeal, no one could really tell what his age was) was sending venomous glares towards Adeodatus, seeming to not care whether the Lord was looking of not. Filling the side pews were assorted nuns, bishops and (surprisingly) men, women and children whose faces all held the wrinkles and wideness of the eyes that all who went through the same ordeal as Mau had.

There must have been over one hundred people there.

Abel moved to sit among his friends, but something moving caught his eye. In the corner, in the dark. He peered more closely, and from what he could tell, two men stood in the dark. Frowning slightly, Abel made his way over to them.

"Excuse me sirs? I think I see—"

He saw the flash a large fang and someone growled. He tensed as he looked into the faces of two vampires. Both were tall and uncommonly beautiful, as were all Methuselah, despite their bangs covering half their face. They also seemed so familiar. Before he had time to dwell on this, one of their arms moved. He got ready to move.

The other vampire reached out and grasped his companion's arm tightly, "Intiki."

Intiki relaxed his arm and took a step back, bowing his head as a sign of submission. The first one bowed his head to Abel.

"Killer of the Rosen Kruez."

It came back to Abel. The first time Stella had ever been in the Vatican, they had been attacked by these two Methuselah. Well, more like Abel had been attacked and Stella had saved him, convincing the vampires that they were stooping to the level of Terrans and that if they tried to hurt Abel they would die that night. The older one had stopped Intiki, who had tried to kill Stella, understanding her words. What in the hell were they doing there?

Abel was about to draw his gun from inside his cape when he realized that when the vampire had spoken, it had been with almost respect. He straightened out of his 'battle ready' pose, though he was ready to drop right back into it if needed, and inclined his head as well.

"You can call me Abel Nightroad," Abel said, sticking out his hand.

The Methuselah raised his visible eyebrow, "I wish to kill you."

Abel smiled nervously, "Ah yes… hence our little, ah last meeting." He mentally shook himself did not lower his hand, keeping the friendly smile on his face. "But you haven't tried it yet."

The Methuselah said slowly, "That is not why we came here today. You may call me Vitus." He grasped Abel's hand and shook it once, before dropping it hastily.

Abel nodded, "So why are you here?"

Vitus nodded towards the confessional, where Stella was probably being asked to recount her sins. "The young Titan female has gained the respect of many. Even now, word spreads among our kind like wildfire. She has changed the way many think, and many families that wre once torn between staying true to the Rosen Kruez and trying to get along with the Terrans are now mended. Through deeds done without thought, she has wrung many apologies from the mouths of the hard-headed." Vitus glanced sideways at Abel, "I still wish to kill you, but I shall listen to her words and not stoop to the level of Terrans."

They stood in silence for a few moments before Vitus added, "She was right, you know."

Abel nodded, "I know."

Vitus looked at Abel, "You are not talking about our first encounter, when I tried to kill you to avenge my brother."

Abel nodded, "I know."

**A/N: So, good, bad? Surprised that many people came? Review!**


	32. Chapter 32

**A/N: I'm working my fingers to the bone.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Trinity Blood.**

Stella sat motionless on a small stool before the altar. Her sensitive ears could pick up over a hundred whispered breaths. She found comfort in the familiar ones, and puzzled over the rest. There were a lot of people there, more than she expected. She recognized most when she turned around, but some were anonymous. She had not seen Abel, but she knew he was there, somewhere.

The small side door opened, and instantly the crowd fell silent. The Pope stepped out of the small room beyond and walked, eyes closed in what seemed to be prayer or tranquility, the familiar path to the altar.

Stella smiled when the Pope opened his eyes and nearly jumped out of his skin. Obviously he did not know that so many people were interested in this case. As he stared nervously at her, Stella could not help but offer him and encouraging smile. He nodded and began.

After offering the expected formalities, Pope Alessandro cleared his throat. "We are all here to bear witness to Miss Iceheart's sentencing. After reviewing the notes from the hearing, I have come to the conclusion that Miss Iceheart is loyal to her friends and family. In fact, I have no doubt in my mind that Miss Iceheart played a part in her brother's disownment of her as well as Leader Demetry's engagement to Miss Vanessa Walsh. Am I right, Miss Iceheart."

Stella smiled at the Pope, "To the latter I'll not say, but to the former, I'm loyal to any and all that deserve my loyalty. Those who need my help will never be turned away."

The Pope raised an eyebrow, "Even if it means sacrificing yourself and your own happiness?"

"Yes," Stella stared at him evenly and responded without hesitation.

"Even if…"

"My Lord," Stella interrupted impatiently, "if it will hurry this along, I will lie, cheat, steal hell, I will (and have) kill to save a friend. I believe anyone within the AX organization who has worked with me can attest to that."

From where she stood, Stella could just hear the Pope sigh. "Miss Iceheart, I have dwelled on this subject in the long hours of the night and have heavily considered the ramifications of a too heavy a punishment. I have also considered your actions with the charges." Pope Alessandro looked into Stella's eyes as he said, "I have cleared you of the charge of treason to Rome, with the knowledge that the actions you took were to benefit the state and the overall safety of society."

"Thank you, sir," Stella said, bobbing her head gratefully.

"Furthermore, I've assigned you two simple tasks, for there are only two charges as of now," the Pope continued, "the first is to receive the signatures of one hundred people that states you are beneficial to their own lives as well as safety to the political and religious rule."

Stella nodded understandingly. She could hear both Leons chuckling quietly somewhere in the pews behind her. Though the people sitting next to them probably could not, she could hear their chuckled whispers.

"I'll bet there's twice that many here."

"Alessandro didn't have a clue when he decided that trial."

"Shush."

The Pope continued, although he looked slightly less confident than he had before, "the first trial must be completed within three hours. The second trial shall be revealed when the first is completed. May the Lord be with you." Without further explanation, the Pope left the room.



Abel looked to his two companions. "If you'll excuse me, gentlemen, I must go talk with Stella." He added as an afterthought, "If you wish, you may come with me. Stella will surely be glad to see you."

Vitus lazily looked at Abel, standing up straight from where he had been leaning against the wall, "We came to observe and, if necessary, stop an unwarranted punishment. We will not interfere so long as your Pope remains reasonable."

Abel nodded his head. "Then if you'll excuse me."

As Abel began walking towards his friend, who had been unshackled and handed a clipboard, Vitus called out after him, "We still hate you."

"I…" Abel turned around to answer him, but both Vitus and his brother were gone.

Shrugging, Abel made his way through the crowd, gently pushing himself through the mass of people who were already getting in line to sign the paper. He smiled brightly when he saw Stella.

She had been given some new clothes, to replace the soiled dress she had worn for so long. Her hair was brushed and her eyes bright. She still had the pinched, thin look about her that made Abel suspect she was not eating, though. She probably did not trust the food that was given to her.

When she saw him, she returned his smile and nodded; he suspected (by the way that she moved and the quick, jerking movement from one of the guards) that she had been about to hug him. Too soon, however they both were reminded of the people around them and were forced to observe the formalities of two colleagues, not friends.

Abel held out a hand, half-bowing as he did so. "May I be the first to sign your paper, Miss Stella?" he asked genially, purposely avoiding the use of her last name.

Stella returned the smile, and practically beamed when he did not use her last name, "I'd be honored, Father Nightroad."

It took just over an hour to obtain the needed signatures. Stella did not even have to travel outside the chapel. When she had come up short with the friends she had, having about eighty-seven (in that number, Abel had noticed, was the elegant writing reading _Vitus _and _Intiki)_, Inquisition soldiers and the Pope's own Bishops humbly asked to sign. They were met with smiles and many of the AX knew that the slight rivalry between the two factions would die.

Stella had become yet another bridge.

Adeodatus had looked furious as she was flocked with person upon person, each wishing to sign the list. Leon Sr. had come up behind Abel and told him that he was keeping an eye on the Lord, and he had disappeared behind the same door as the Pope. Both agents watched the door until Adeodatus returned.

He ignored both of the men's glares as he stepped up to Stella. People moved aside, as if by being close to him, they would contract a disease. Abel and Leon were separated, and pushed to the back. The Lord asked grandly, as if he way doing Stella a favor by offering, if he may sign the paper. Neither AX agent heard Stella's answer, but her eyes were cold and her face stiff. The people around her, surprisingly enough mostly Inquisition soldiers, smiled, as if hearing a joke. Adeodatus left without ever having touched the clipboard.

Someone was sent to retrieve the Pope, who hurried back in surprise. All settled into a quiet murmur as the Pope approached the altar. Utter silence fell as the Pope cleared his throat.

"I must say, Miss Iceheart that I am thoroughly impressed." He smiled, "Not only that, but I am only more thoroughly convinced that the decision I've made is the right one."

"My next trial is a rather long one, and I'm afraid it will upset many people. However, given that you are a Titan and have quite awhile on this earth, I suppose it might not bother you as much." The Pope looked nervous before saying, "In a little over two hours, a plane will take off to the Buddah Island. You will be on that plane and will stay on the island for…"

The room became tense. Everyone was sitting on the edge of their seats, waiting for the decree. The fact that Stella was leaving hit her hard. She had gone through the entire ordeal just so she would not have to leave. _Calm down. _She told herself. _It might not be as bad as you think._

"… one year."

**A/N: Review!**


	33. Chapter 33

**A/N: Yeah. Finals are ova! Woot!**

**I decided to do a story on deviantart. Anyone who likes my stories probably would like that, but I promise that this story is probably a lot better than the stories on fanfiction. My penname on there is 'elpmip' and keywords for it are 'fallon', 'warrior', 'moon', 'sun', and 'fortress'. You'll probably have to enter all of them in. After that, you will probably have to go into my gallery to find the prologue and read it in order. So, here's a summary:**

**Men have attacked the Fortress of Stars. After a night of terror and confusion, only a woman, Fallon, and her daughter escape the massacre. Alone and afraid, they flee to the Fortress of Stone.  
Now, Fallon must try to become a part of the Fortress' daily life, but the residents are scornful of both her and her daughter, who is more than meets the eye. At the same time, Fallon must wrestle with her depression from her husband's and her family's death. With no respite from either, Fallon slowly begins to question her faith and her sanity.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Trinity Blood.**

Stella's mind froze. She felt as if time had stopped for her. More words were said and the Pope left, Adeodatus trailing behind him. As they left, people began to shift. She felt a hand on her shoulder, but did not acknowledge it. Finally, a soft, heavenly voice brought her back to reality.

"Stella? Stella, look at me."

Stella slowly turned her head and Father Abel's face brought her back. She blinked a few times before smiling weakly. The sympathetic look he gave her felt like a squeeze to her heart. She shook her head sadly and turned her face away, unable to look at his face and not cry and refusing to let anyone see her tears.

She felt an arm across her shoulders before being pulled into Abel's embrace. A startled gasp escaped her Abel warmly hugged her. She settled her head on his shoulder.

"Stella…" he trailed off, and Stella knew he did know what to stay.

She laughed lightly and shook her head against his shoulder, appalled to find her cheeks wet with tears. "I can't believe this. You know, the only reason I stayed in that goddamned cell was because I would eventually get out, and then I could stay with you?" She ignored how Abel stiffened, too tired to stop the flow of words. "I was stupid enough to think that these Terrans would trust me enough to stay on their land." A shudder passed through her.

Abel pulled away, and Stella could see that they were alone. She could feel her face warming with embarrassment, anyway. She stepped back, completely out of the hug, and attempted a convincing smile.

"Thank you, Father Nightroad," She said softly.

Abel grinned widely, "You're very welcome, Stella."

Stella felt her heart flutter, and quickly squashed the feeling for further inspection later, on what promised to be a very long flight. She returned Abel's smile and laughed nervously. "Yeah… besides, it's only a year. With our immortal lives, the year will be nothing." Stella suddenly felt like she was treading in unsafe territory, with too many 'ours' and 'yous'. She chuckled, abruptly changing the subject. "Make sure old Leon doesn't keel over while I'm gone."

"HEY! I heard that!" Leon Sr. stormed into the room from where he had very obviously been listening at the door. Behind him, the two could very clearly make out the figure of Leon Jr. on the ground, laughing, tears streaming from his eyes.

Abel and Stella met each other's eyes. A slow smile crept across their faces simultaneously and they joined in the giggling, Abel's loud, happy chuckles mixing with Stella's subdued laugh.



Stella felt her heart sink at the sight of the helicopter. It had landed on the lawns of the AX's, the Inquisition buildings', and the chapel's shared grounds. The whirling noise of the helicopter's blades irritated her ears, promising a headache in the near future.

She had been given two hours to spend with her friends and family, explaining why the Pope wanted her to obtain the signatures in such a 'short' amount of time. Had she used the full time that the Pope had given her, she would have had only minutes.

Abel never left her side, though. As she exchanged hugs and farewells to friends and teased Demetry unmercifully about his 'engagement', he stood with her, barely talking, but offering support when she needed it most.

Now it was time to go. The shackles, which were, in all honesty, unnecessary annoyances had been removed, and she had been given a white shirt, black pants, her old jacket and boots (at her request, as she refused to where the slippers that would barely protect her feet should she get into a fight). She had already thought of multiple escape plans, weighed the probability of success, and selected the best ones, only to throw them away. She knew that if she ever wanted to be with her friends again, she had to do this. It was only a year, right?

She felt a slight pressure on her shoulder. She turned to find the Pope staring back at her. She wanted to dislike him, to be hostile towards him, but she knew that he had made the best decision he could have in that situation. Besides, she had known enough hate and anger in the past decades to fill a lifetime… or at least a human's lifetime.

"Miss Iceheart," the Pope lowered his voice, "I have no doubt that you are a trustworthy and steadfast friend and agent. This is simply an exercise that has been pushed upon you. It is unfair, but I hope you will feel no bitterness for it."

Stella allowed the corners of her mouth to lift slightly as she placed a small hand on the man's forearm. No sense in scaring him. "Pope Alessandro, one year is but a miniscule amount of time in my life." He smiled and opened his moth, as if readying to say something, but Stella stepped closer and whispered in his ear, "It shall be the most painful year of my life. You have cut me away from the people I love, and for that I can't forgive you." She stepped away and glared at him; she knew her eyes were hard.

Alessandro nodded. "I can't expect you to."

As he walked away, Stella felt as if she should strike him. There were no shackles, anymore, and there was no one around that could actually stop her should she decide to do just that. She felt a presence behind her and whirled about to see Abel standing a few feet away. Instantly her resentment faded.



Abel closed the distance between himself and Stella in moments. He had been thinking all day; about Stella and about Esther. His guilt, which he had been able to squash beneath a façade that was able to fool even himself for more than a year, had come roaring up to meet him when he first lost Stella, all those ago, when she had died before him on the floor of Dormaloone's palace. Then again, when she he had lost her a second and third time.

Esther had asked him so, so long ago to do something that he had promised himself he never would. Now, as he stood here, beside Stella, he realized that he had done just that, and Esther truly was always right.

"Did you think that I would let you leave without saying goodbye?" he asked softly, much too close to Stella. His senses were on overdrive, and he felt as if he and she were the only ones there.

"Of course not," Stella answered. A challenging spark entered her eye, replacing the saddened stare he had seen on her face only minutes ago, when she was facing the plane. "Abel," Stella began, but their eyes met.

Her voice broke and without further, warming, she threw her arms about his neck. Abel returned the embrace, forgetting that he was a priest, forgetting that Demetry was probably watching, forgetting that the Pope was _definitely _watching. Right now, he was standing with Stella in the field of grass, gray with the winter's cold, the helicopter waiting behind her, the small group of onlookers obscured by his frame, and wishing the moment would never end. He buried his face in the crook of Stella's neck, greedily drinking in the memory of her.

As they pulled away from the hug that had lasted longer than necessary, Stella's blue eyes sought his, and she studied his face for a few seconds. He stood still, taking the chance to memorize her face; the gentle curve of her cheek, her determined chin, and her blue eyes that held so much emotion locked behind coded wards.

Stella brought her hands to the back of her neck, and then put them behind his. Abel looked down at himself to see a crude heart, the humps arched only slightly, resting on his chest. The heart was cut so that eight small triangles lifted to it, creating strange angles and different points of light. The gem itself was a beautiful red-golden that changed color as it shifted in Abel's fingers. His eyes widened and he looked to Stella.

She smiled sadly, "Don't get yourself into trouble while I'm gone; I can't bail you out when I'm across the ocean."

Abel chuckled halfheartedly, "How cruel," he said, without his usual vigor.

Almost as if someone else was controlling his body, his hands lifted to his hair, knowing before his mind did what he was going to give her. His silver hair flying free as he pulled the ribbon out, Abel held it in front of Stella and motioned for her wrist.

"May I?" he asked quietly.

Stella lifted her hand. As he gently tied the ribbon to her wrist, he could have sworn he felt a shiver go through her. When his attention was once again on her face, or more specifically, her eyes, she finally spoke again, her voice firm, commanding, and even threatening.

"Don't you dare forget me, Able Nightroad."

Abel would have laughed, if he had the time. Before he could stop himself, Abel leaned down to gently touch his lips to hers.

Her lips were warm, or perhaps he was just cold? It did not matter. He felt as if he was soaring. Stella did not push him away, as he had feared, but in fact replaced her arms about his neck. A few seconds or centuries later, they pulled away.

They stared at each other until an Inquisition guard took Stella roughly by the shoulder. Simultaneously, they both growled at the man, who backed away nervously. They held each other's gaze for a moment more, before Stella was forced to follow the guard, who had brought several of his comrades with overlarge weapons.

Still, Abel and Stella stared almost longingly at each other, even as the helicopter lifted into the air and began to fly away, through the glass. When the helicopter was merely a speck in the sky, Abel's gloved hand reached into his pocket to pull out a dry, crumpled paper.

Tears of grief and age had ripped the paper and blurred the words, but miraculously, one sentence still remained. It was the last sentence Queen Esther of Albion, the Star of Hope, had ever written.

'_Abel, I want you to love again.'_

Abel kept his eyes trained on the horizon as he softly whispered, "I love you, Stella."

**A/N: Review!**


	34. Chapter 34

**A/N: Okay, so I just got a slight burn. Here's part of the message:**

**Stella? What kind of name is that?**

**The reviewer then goes on to explain why the name Stella is so incredibly wrong. So, if any of you were wondering about it (and were too polite to write a review with so much **_**scorn**_** injected into it), I will explain the origin of Stella's name. **

**Stella is a name that means 'star' and is actually quite old. The name itself is a kind of irony, as Abel has already fallen in love with a girl named star, Esther. I did not mean to create a name that seemed too out there, but there were other names that mean star that I am sure the fanfiction community would not be able to understand, especially since I had to go on special websites to look them up myself. So, if any of you don't like the name Stella, I'm sorry but that's part of the story. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own Trinity Blood, this is now ingrained into my mind, thank you. **

The hoe swung in an arc, its metal head glinting in the sun. A second later, the blade buried itself in the soft ground, dragging backwards. Stella straightened her back and cracked her neck. _'This isn't as bad as it could be.' _She thought to herself.

Here on the island, all the fathers and nuns were exceptionally quiet. In fact, more than half of the people on the isle had taken vows of silence. Which was fine with her; did she not often complain to Father N… Abel that city life was far too loud for her sensitive Titan ears? Besides, she's only been there for a month; it was not too bad yet, right?

She was going nuts! Honestly, who could stand so much silence? She took her frustration out upon the ground, hitting it repeatedly with the hoe in her hands. She did not notice that a Father was walking towards her before he grabbed the hoe in mid swing. Her eyes widened in surprise; she had not been using all of her strength, but it was a substantial amount. It should have been very difficult for one of these old men to resist the hoe, let alone stop it all together.

She turned about and it was only through many years of diplomacy training (her father had always thought it important) that she was able to keep her jaw from dropping. Towering above her was a mammoth of a man; he must have been more than eight feet tall!

She swallowed hard but looked brazenly into the man's face. He chuckled deeply, sending small vibrations up through Stella's shoes. Setting the hoe on the ground, the man casually wiped his hands on his habit.

"Relax, little one. No one here wishes you harm."

"You believe that," Stella said, wiping her hands on her brown trousers, "then you're not guarding yourself well enough."

Another deep laugh sent vibrations through Stella. "Haha. Little one, I have heard about your strength and your sins, but I have not heard yet of your humor."

Stella roughly grabbed the hoe from the ground and plunged it back into the earth many times. "My sins, eh?"

"Oh, yes." Even on the subject that would be awkward to most, the monk exuded an aura of tranquility, he even seemed amused. Oddly enough, his disposition lifted Stella's spirits slightly. "Abandonment of duties, treason, acts against God, oh my."

Stella offered a sad smile, leaning on the hoe, "You don't seem half as concerned as a monk should be."

The man shrugged, "Perhaps not. If you ask me," he lowered his voice conspiratorially, "it's all a load of nonsense."

For the first time in the month since Stella had come to the island, she smiled genuinely.



"Come on!"

"No."

"Move! Now!"

"No."

"Please?"

"No."

"Damn you!" Michael Leon spat.

Smack! "Who taught you that language you man?" Leon Sr. growled at his son.

"You did!" Michael growled right back, tugging once more at Abel's habit. "Come on, Abel. Get up!"

"I just want to sleep," Abel said quietly.

Leon Sr. rolled his eyes. "You've been sleeping for the past month. Now it's time to stop moping! Sister Ellen said she has an early Christmas gift for you," he urged, attempting to keep his tone calm and convincing.

Abel sighed heavily; he knew that neither of the Leons would leave him be unless he got up. Ever since Stella left, all he wanted to do was sleep. Unlike the days when she was just gone, and he had no idea where she was, Abel had no motivation to throw himself into church duties or help the nuns clean. Whenever he got up, he counted the moments before the day would be over, and he could crawl back into his dreams, where happy reunions with Stella awaited. He had gotten a calendar for his room, and counted down the days until his dreams could finally come to fruition.

"You have five minutes to get your ass out in the hallway or we're coming back here," Michael said.

Smack! "Who the hell taught you that word?"

"I keep tellin' you, old man…"

Abel chuckled softly to himself as his two friends argued on the way out. Some things never changed.

Mindful of Michael's warning, Abel quickly washed and dressed, pulling his hair up into a pony tail and perching his glasses atop his nose. Oddly enough, the way he got dressed reminded him of the mornings after Esther's death, after the numbness had gone away, that is.

Abel felt a pang of guilt. Esther had told him to love again, and yet he vowed he never would. He had gone back on a promise that he had made to himself, but had he fulfilled that promise, Esther would have been disappointed in him. Really, if he kept all the foolish promises he made back then, he would probably not be able to venture outside his room until all had fallen asleep.

Still, he missed Esther's smiling face terribly. It was the memory of her laugh, of her smile, that kept him going through those long years during his battles with Cain. Now, the thought that in one year he would be reunited with Stella go him through the day. It was the same golden feeling he felt all those years ago.

_I wonder how long we'll last this time. _Abel thought morbidly. No woman that he fell in love with ever lived very long, at least not by Cruisnik standards. But Cain was gone now, and Abel doubted that there were many more evil people that were as strong as Cain. Abel hated to think this way, but Esther and Noelle… they were frail. Human.

Stella was not nearly as frail. She was in fact one of the stronger beings he had ever met in his long centuries. She did not die very easily. She was fast, too. If she had to run, she could buy herself some time should something come after her. No, he was sure she would not die easily.

_But she has died, or at least come close to it, twice while she was with you. How many more times has she come so close in her long years? Perhaps stronger is not better. Stronger means more enemies and more chances taken. Can you handle that? _A voice in Abel's head cynically called out to him,

Maybe he could protect her. Every time he had lost someone it was because he had been too late. In some cases, he had been merely minutes too late. If she was strong enough to hold on for those few minutes, then perhaps he could protect her.

"Abel!"

Snapped back into reality by the Leon's double-cry Abel quickly finished tying off his hair and ran to meet his friends. Oddly enough, despite the morbidity of his thoughts, Abel felt a little better now.

**A/N: Sorry it took so long for an update, but I'm talking to you from grounded land. Also, a bunch of keys on my laptop came off so I have to type a lot more slowly now. If anyone knows how to fix that, help would be appreciated. Review!**


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